A New Life
by Zimarah
Summary: After the defeat of Beryl and Metalia, Endymion is crowned King and prepares for his wedding to Serenity. Part two of the Different Destiny series, so you should read that first. PGSM universe.
1. Chapter 1

Kunzite walked a brisk pace down the hall of the Earth Palace. Repairs were coming along smoothly, but there was still a lot of work to be done. The entire west half of the palace was still off limits, but slowly their home was returning to it's original appearance.

It had been just over a month since they had won the battle against Beryl and Metalia, although Kunzite had been forced into bed rest on the Moon for the first week. He had hated every minute of it. He would have much rather been helping in the search to find his Master's father. At least then he would have been able to take his mind off the events of the battle. Instead he had been forced to remember them, over and over. Zoisite's advice of "try to not think about it" wasn't particularly useful. What's the first thing one thinks of when they are told not to think of something?

Thankfully no one had brought up the experience he was eager to forget since he was allowed to return Earth. Everyone probably had assumed that it had been simple physical pain that Beryl had inflicted on them, but they couldn't have been more wrong. The mental anguish he had experienced had been many times worse that anything he had felt physically. Scenes had played out in his mind, some of his worse nightmares come to life, or at least felt like they had. Images of the other Tennou crushed under marble pillars, their lifeless eyes staring up at him. His own Master falling to the ground, his blood on Kunzite's own sword.

Kunzite stopped, raising his hand to the wall for support while he tried to once again suppress the memories. Every once in a while they would return to him without any provocation.

The footsteps behind him stopped and waited, all too familiar with what Kunzite was going through. Hesitantly, Kunzite glanced behind him, knowing that his moment of weakness had probably just triggered the same thing in Zoisite.

The other Tennou was forcing himself to keep his expression impassive, but his hands were curled into shaking fists at his sides. Kunzite closed his eyes and took a deep breath before continuing down the hall. The click of Zoisite's boots followed soon after. Once again, the moment had passed.

The Master's father, the late King Endymion, had been found shortly after Kunzite had returned from the Moon. It appeared that he had hidden himself in the basement of the palace where no one would find him. He had taken his own life, his hand still holding the hilt of his sword. In his other hand was a letter to his son.

The details of the King's death were not released to the public, it was simply stated that he had not survived the attack. Prince Endymion had taken the news rather well considering and had appeared strong for his people at the funeral. 

It was now late morning, and preparations were currently underway for Endymion's coronation. The ceremony was to take place in the afternoon, but there was still a lot of work to be done. The two Tennou were on their way to greet the priest who would be preforming the ceremony. The same man had also crowned their Master's father many years ago.

Kunzite pushed open the doors and stepped outside. It was a warm and sunny day. Summer was just beginning. The flowers in the gardens were in full bloom, the birds chirped near by, a sharp contrast to the scenery not too long ago.

An old carriage pulled up to the gate. A rickety old thing that had probably seen better days, but fulfilled its purpose just the same. The driver jumped down, handing the reins over to one of the palace guards while he opened the door. Kunzite and Zoisite immediately stepped forward to assist the older priest down the carriage steps.

"Ah, thank you both," he said, once he had his feet firmly on the ground.

"I am Kunzite, this is Zoisite, we are two of Prince Endymion's Shitennou," Kunzite said, introducing the two of them.

The old priest nodded, "I know who you are, it was I who the late King asked to select his son's guardians. You've grown."

This caught both Tennou off guard, Kunzite glanced at Zoisite then back at the old man. He couldn't help but smile. "I hope you'll accept my apology for not remembering you, Yoshitera-sama."

"It is hardly your fault, you were only five at the time. Now, I believe we have a lot to do in a very short amount of time."

"Of course. Please come this way."

* * *

"Princess, please. If you don't hold still I am going to mess up your makeup."

"I can't help it, Venus, I'm so nervous."

Mercury couldn't help but chuckle. Since Metalia's defeat, life had become so much simpler. Hectic, but simple. It has been a long time since the Senshi leader's most pressing concern was the light pink lipstick she was attempting to apply to their Princess's lips.

At the time, Mercury herself was not entirely sure what had happened. Queen Serenity had stepped out and used the Ginzuishou. After Beryl had been hit by the Sailor Planet Attack, the Ginzuishou's light had absorbed Beryl. At this point, the light from the Ginzuishou had become almost unbearably bright. Mercury couldn't see anything, and when the light dimmed, Beryl, the youma army, and Metalia's presence were gone.

A few days passed while the Queen regathered her strength before Mercury decided to ask her what had happened.

"Your Majesty, I must ask, was Metalia destroyed?"

"No. To destroy Metalia would mean to destroy the Ginzuishou as well."

"So, then Metalia is still... alive somewhere?" Mercury hadn't been sure if 'alive' was the right word, but her meaning was understood none-the-less.

"Yes, though I do not know where. We can only hope that she remains dormant for a good long time."

"What of the woman, Beryl?"

The Queen's expression turned regretful for a moment. "She had been too far corrupted by Metalia's evil. There was nothing I could do for her."

So, Beryl had been destroyed and Metalia sealed away. The thought that Metalia still existed made Mercury nervous, but the Ginzuishou was a necessary power, so she could only hope that wherever Metalia was, she stayed there.

"Mercury, is something wrong?"

The blue haired Senshi suddenly realized that in becoming lost in her thoughts, she had stopped brushing the Princess's hair. "I'm sorry, I was just thinking about something," she apologized, putting the brush down to begin braiding the Princess's hair.

"It wouldn't happen to be about a certain someone, or someones, would it?" Jupiter asked, standing nearby with some small pink flowers that were going to be added to the Princess's hair. The taller Senshi seemed to have taken an interest in Mercury's love life, or so she called it. 

"No," Mercury said, trying to hide a blush, "it's not that." The Senshi and the Shitennou has seen more of each other in the past month than they had in all the time before the battle. According to Jupiter, two of Endymion's guardians had taken an interest in her, but Mercury herself couldn't see it. Regardless, she couldn't help think about the two men, Nephrite and Kunzite.

In the case of Nephrite, Mercury couldn't imagine him to be at all attracted to her. It seemed as though he was always fuming about one thing or an other. When Mercury did try to talk to him, he would become so quiet and in the end would simply walk away in a huff.

Kunzite, on the other hand, was very easy to talk to. He had a kind smile and always seemed to take an interest in what she wanted to talk about. Of the Shitennou, he was the one Mercury considered herself closest to, but there was certainly nothing romantic between them, was there?

"But now it is."

Once again, Mercury looked over at the smiling Senshi of Thunder, then back at her unfinished braid. Jupiter handed the flowers to Mercury and took over finishing Serenity's hair. "Sorry."

"Mercury," Mars spoke up, "I don't think it's a good idea for any of us to be romantically involved with the Shitennou, or any Earth men for that matter."

"Oh, I'm not!" Mercury protested quickly.

Jupiter frowned slightly, "oh, come on now Mars, I don't think it's that bad."

"Venus, you agree with me, don't you?"

There was a long pause that Mercury took note of. She was fairly certain that in the last month, Venus' original opinion of the Shitennou had changed significantly. "I think we should still be more concerned with our Princess than with our personal lives."

"I am right here, Venus," Serenity said, "and I think that if Mercury wants to start courting one of the Shitennou, she should." The Princess then turned quickly to face Mercury, almost resulting in a smear of eyeliner across her forehead. "Who are you thinking of?" she asked excitedly.

"It's nothing, really."

* * *

Endymion paced nervously in his chambers, mumbling the speech he had prepared over and over. He only had a few minutes left to make sure everything was right. It wasn't the coronation ceremony that he was nervous about, it was his first announcement as King.

For the time being he was alone. Jadeite and Nephrite were seeing to the guests while Zoisite and Kunzite assisted the priest, Yoshitera. 

"I want to introduce... no. I would like to introduce..." A knock at Endymion's door startled the King-to-be. He realized that his hands were shaking and held one in the other to try and calm them. "Come in."

It was Nephrite who opened the door. "Master, it's time."

Endymion nodded and looked at himself in the mirror once more. "Serenity and the Senshi?" he asked quietly.

"Ready and waiting."

Taking a deep breath, the Prince turned and joined his guardians, all four were waiting in the hall. "What if... What if they don't... like her?"

"Master, it's not as if this announcement is coming unexpected," Kunzite said as he lead the way to the throne room.

"I know," Endymion replied, "but after everything that's happened."

"Everything will be fine, Master," Jadeite added, trying to reassure the Prince as well. "It won't be too long before you are the King, after all."

"Just because I'm about to be King doesn't mean I will get to have my own way all the time, Jadeite."

The Shitennou got him to the doors where he would wait to make his grand entrance. They themselves would be expected inside before the ceremony began. Words wishing the Prince luck were said and he was soon left alone.

It would only be a few minutes wait, but the time suddenly began to drag for Endymion. He worried about the speech he had prepared, he worried about his people's reaction to it, and he worried about even being half as good a king as his father was.

His father. Endymion had been the only one to read the contents of the letter his father had left for him. He had considered himself a failure for letting the Earth fall as it had and he had decided that should Metalia be defeated, it should his son who ruled, not him.

'_It was my fault all this happened, not his,_' Endymion thought to himself, and not for the first time. '_How could he expect me to be a better king?_'

The doors were opened on schedule and he stepped into the throne room. Every person in the room stood and bowed their head as he passed them. Various nobility and other well-off citizens that Endymion didn't particularly care for. He was much more concerned with those that had suffered greatly during the war.

His father's crown sat in it's glass case, embodying everything that he feared about being King. He would only have to wear the crown for part of the day, then he planned on locking it away for the rest of his rule. While his father did wear the crown on special occasions, Prince Endymion had no such desire, nor would he be required to.

His Shitennou stood to the left of the throne, in order of rank. They too bowed as he approached. So much formality, Endymion hated it.

He took his place in front of the throne. To its right was set a smaller seat, though just as plush. In less than two months it would be replaced with a chair to match his own, but protocols, which he had been advised by many not to break, stated that Serenity would have to wait until she too was allowed such regal seating.

The priest, Yoshitera, then stepped forward, nodding politely to Endymion before going into a long speech. Endymion tried to pay attention, but it was truly difficult. He just wanted this to be over with as quickly as possible.

Next came the pledge, which he could have recited from memory, but was allowed to repeat after Yoshitera. 

"... and I swear that I shall protect the Earth until my dying breath."

The elderly priest then nodded to the four Tennou, who stepped forward and approached the crown. Traditionally, only the priest performing the coronation and the King himself were permitted to touch the crown, but the Shitennou would be allowed a role.

Jadeite and Nephrite stepped up to the case and held their hands towards the glass casing. Slowly the cover lifted from the pedestal, and the two Tennou guided it to the floor, or so it would appear to anyone observing. Zoisite was actually the one using his telekinetic abilities, as none of the other three trusted in their abilities to be as precise.

Zoisite and Kunzite stepped up next to handle the crown itself. It floated between their hands as 'they' guided it to Yoshitera. There was no actual contact with the crown, so the priest would be satisfied.

Finished with their part of the ceremony, the four guardians returned to their places and Yoshitera turned to face Endymion once more. Knowing that it was that time, the Prince knelt in front of the priest on one knee.

"It is with great pleasure, that I am now able to crown you King of Earth."

Endymion held his breath as the rather heavy ornament was placed on his head. "May you be as good a king as your father was."

'_That's what I'm worried about,_' Endymion couldn't help but think. He slowly rose from the floor and everyone else then knelt themselves. It was strange to see so many people showing such subservience to him. Looking to his left, he saw that his Tennou had also fallen to one knee. '_I really hope that I don't have to get used to this._'

The newly crowned King let out the breath he had been holding before speaking. "Please, everyone rise."

Slowly, much too slowly for Endymion's liking, his court rose. Giving a tentative look to his left again, he saw his Tennou giving him nods, silently telling him to continue with what he was about to say.

"As..." Endymion paused and cleared his throat nervously before starting over. "As my first act as King, there is someone I wish to introduce to you all..."

* * *

"But I want to see what is going on!"

While she tried not to, Venus was losing patience with her charge. She had explained several times that Serenity could not enter the throne room until the appropriate time.

"Princess, just a little bit longer," Mercury offered softly. "I'm sure it won't be long now."

"Do you think he's officially King yet?" the Princess asked as she fidgeted outside the main doors. Suddenly, worry filled Serenity's face. "Oh no. What if they don't like me!"

"They'll like you, Princess," Jupiter offered, with a bit of a chuckle. "Don't worry."

"But... after everything that's happened..."

"Are you ready?" one of the attendants asked. 

Venus quickly glanced over her fellow Senshi and the Princess, who appeared nervous, but nodded confidently. "We're ready."

The doors opened and suddenly everyone in the room turned and faced the new arrivals. "... Princess Serenity of the Silver Millennium and future Queen of Earth."

The Princess stepped forward after Endymion finished the introduction and Venus and the other Senshi followed behind her. The Princess walked down the centre aisle slowly and carefully, as if afraid she would trip. Her gloved hands clasped tightly together in front of her.

Venus looked around as they traveled to the other end of the Throne Room. The guests were politely bowing to them, and none seemed terribly upset by their presence. When they reached the throne, the Shitennou as well bowed their heads for a moment and Endymion offered the Princess his arm. Venus then lead the Senshi so that they stood to the right of Sererity's seat, with Venus closest to her.

Endymion guided the Princess to her seat, then slowly sat on the throne himself. Venus' gaze landed past the new king however and on his second guardian. Zoisite, like the other Tennou, stood at attention until the king was seated, then he allowed himself a more relaxed stance.

It was Zoisite that Venus knew best of the Shitennou. The Princess and Endymion had put them jointly in charge of the music that would be played for the wedding and the party afterwards. Venus hadn't been aware that the Tennou had any musical talent, and it seemed as though the same was true vise versa. As a special request, the future bride and groom had also asked that the guardians themselves perform the song that would be their first dance. It was quite a grand request, but one that both Venus and Zoisite had agreed too.

The Princess had always loved Venus' singing voice, often asking her to sing one of her favourite songs. While this had been easy enough to do, the thought of singing in front of so many people, and at such an important event did make the Senshi of Love and Beauty rather nervous.

Zoisite, she had learned, played a wide range of instruments, but his personal favourite was the piano. She played some piano herself, but her skill was nothing compared to his. Playing that instrument seemed to come as naturally to him as breathing did to anyone else.

When she realized that she had been staring at the white haired man for several minutes, Venus quickly turned and looked at the rest of the room. Many members of the nobility were bringing forth issues of concern to the new king. Many of the villages and cities on Earth had suffered varying degrees of damage and reconstruction would be needed.

Venus felt that such things would bore the young Princess, but to Venus' surprise, Serenity appeared to be rather interested in what Endymion was saying and doing. Maybe the thought of being Queen of Earth in two months had instilled a sudden sense of responsibility in the Princess.

Venus looked back over at the Shitennou and found, to her surprise, that Zoisite had been looking at her. He nodded to her before quickly finding something else to occupy his attention.


	2. Chapter 2

It had been a week since the Master's coronation, and already he was working hard at getting the towns nearest to the palace back on their feet. The closest town was Kurokawa, and that was where Jadeite, along with Nephrite, the Master and a few other hands that could be spared, were heading.

They had left just before sunrise, planning to arrive just before noon if they rode at a leisurely pace. The town's head official was expecting some help from the palace, but he did not know that the King himself would be arriving and planned to help as well.

"They're probably not going to let you help, Master," Jadeite said as the town came into sight.

"I can order them to let me help," was his reply.

Nephrite chuckled. "I'm looking forward to seeing Okano-san's face when he sees you, Master."

Okano Hiroshi was a good friend of the royal family, and the Master had been very relieved to hear that the man was well after the attack. Jadeite had been relieved himself, of course, and he knew that Nephrite was looking forward to seeing the man again, as they had some unfinished business.

The attendants at the town gates were quiet surprised to see who had arrive and one ran off quickly while the others offered to take the horses. Jadeite dismounted and handed the reins off, before taking a look around. His face fell at what he saw.

Not one building was without at least some damage, and at least half were completely destroyed. Temporary shelters had been set up using some of the debris, but they lacked all four walls, and had a barely passable roof.

Jadeite looked over at the Master and saw that he too was dismayed at the sight. He knew that the Master was already blaming himself, he had made a habit of it lately.

"King Endymion-sama!"

Jadeite looked over and saw a shocked Okano-san running over. He was a middle-aged man, in his late thirties. A little shorter than most, and a bit rounder as well. His black hair was now sprinkled with gray.

"Endymion-sama, I didn't know that you were coming," Okano said, a little out of breath.

"That's because I didn't tell you, Okano-san. You would have tried to talk me out of it." The Master paused for a moment and surveyed the damage once again. "I can't believe this happened..."

"I understand the palace is in rough shape as well."

"Most of it is still standing though. Okano-san, please accept my apologies."

The older man shook his head. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Your Majesty. As I recall, it was a red-haired woman who did most of the damage."

The Master smiled, "Thank you."

"Come," Okano said, gesturing towards the main street, "I'll show you what's happened. And please, call me Hiroshi, Your Majesty. Your father did."

Jadeite followed behind the two men and looked around as their were given the tour. He took note of the number of people he saw, and Nephrite it seemed noticed the same thing.

"This town used to be a lot busier," he whispered.

It was true. This town, at one point, had been home to several hundred citizens, many of them family of those who worked in the palace. Jadeite guessed that there could be no more than a hundred now. It gave him a chill.

They were approaching Okano's own home, and Jadeite noted that there were three woman gathered outside. One he knew to be the old man's wife, but the other two were younger. He didn't recognize them. They came forward when asked and were introduced.

"This is Shimada Kichi, the daughter of the farmers. She was the only surviver of the family. We took her in," Okano said. The girl couldn't have been more than twelve. She bowed, but was too shy to say anything. Still she was showing a lot of bravery for one so young.

"And this is Kurokawa Amaya, or at least, that's the name we gave her," he explained. "She's not from this town, and we found her on the night that the battle ended. She has no memory of how she got here or where she's from."

"It's nice to meet you," she said, smiling. Once Jadeite's eyes landed on the girl, he couldn't tear them away. She seemed to be about the same age as he, with long, dark brown hair. If Jadeite had to guess, he would have said that one of her parents was probably from the cities much further west. She was quite beautiful.

Amaya herself was staring back at him, and gave him a smile. A little embarrassed to have been looking at her for so long, he smiled and nodded in return. Looking up, he saw that Nephrite was smirking at him.

* * *

For most people, a walk through the gardens of the Earth Palace with a man like Kunzite would have been romantic, but this was purely business for the Senshi of Thunder.

"I still can't believe you know the first thing about flowers," she said.

"And why not?" he asked.

"Because it's generally something women are interested in."

Kunzite raised an eyebrow at this. "You don't strike me as particularly feminine yourself, Jupiter."

"I'm not," she stated matter-of-factly. A collection of tulips caught her eye then and she crouched down to get a better look. "The Princess would love these."

Jupiter heard Kunzite make a sound of disgust and looked up to see what the problem was. "Pink?" he asked.

"It is her favourite colour."

"I hate pink," he said under his breath, just loud enough for Jupiter to catch it.

"It's not your wedding," she said with a smile and stood upright again. "What is King Endymion's favourite colour?"

"And why would I know that?"

"You grew up together, didn't you?"

Kunzite rolled his eyes before answering. "Yes, but our discussions were mostly about weaponry. We didn't have tea parties or play with dolls."

Jupiter was starting to wonder if he was trying to make her angry, or if it was pure talent. She turned back to the flowers. "So when do you start being useful?" If he was only going to stand around and complain about each flower choice she made, what good was he?

She continued walking through the garden, amazed at the variety. It was as if there were too many types and colours to choose from. Jupiter was afraid that she would take too much time in deciding, considering that the wedding was actually quite close.

"White and pale yellow."

Confused, Jupiter looked back at the black haired man. "What?"

"The Master's favourite colours. The colours of the Moon when viewed from Earth."

Jupiter smiled and crossed her arms. "There, was that so painful?"

Kunzite appeared to ignore her comment, and instead walked past Jupiter and into another section of garden. Curious, she followed and soon found herself surrounded by roses. "He's always had a particular fondness for the rose," Kunzite explained as he knelt down to inspect some of the white blossoms.

"They're beautiful."

* * *

The room had been unusually silent for several minutes. Venus had asked that Zoisite not play while she hurried to write the lyrics she had thought up, as she didn't want to forget them before she got them on paper.

The Tennou watched her as she wrote. She had a wonderful singing voice, he had to admit. This unexpected team up hadn't turned out as poorly as he had been expecting. She could sing, she had a talent for lyrics, if only she would learn too...

"OK, now play that passage again."

...stop being so assertive. Zoisite raised an eyebrow at the demand, but did as requested. Unlike some of the other residents of the Earth Palace, Zoisite felt no need to pick fights with the Senshi. He had a job to do, and it involved working with Venus. The faster they worked, the sooner they would be done. The wedding was approaching fast, and Zoisite was sure the Master could use their help in other areas as well.

"Wait, stop," Zoisite said, halting his fingers on the keys. "Raise your voice here by a semitone," he instructed, gesturing to the music in front of him.

"That's going to clash with everything else."

"Trust me."

He heard her sigh, but agreed non-the-less. Beginning the passage again, Venus did as requested, and Zoisite altered his playing to work with the new key. He continued playing until Venus reached the end of what she had written, then let the open chord hang in the air.

"Oh wow," Venus began. "That sounded... really good."

Zoisite couldn't help but feel a little satisfied by Venus' surprised reaction, and he had to agree, the song was coming along nicely. "Yes, you do."

"What?"

"The song, it sounds good so far."

"That's not what you said the first time. You said that _I_ sounded good."

Zoisite paused, considering his slip in speech. "I suppose you do as well," he replied, looking over at her with a slight smile on his face. "You do have a wonderful singing voice."

This compliment had apparently caught the Senshi Leader off guard as she verbally stumbled to find a "thank you".

"It's was nothing," the Tennou replied, returning his attention to the unfinished sheets of music in front of him. Grabbing his quill pen, he began to make the necessary key changes. He noted Venus' silence while he did this, normally she would be leaning over his shoulder if he decided to change anything.

He replaced the pen and began to move his fingers over the keys, though he did not play them. He could hear the music in his head just as well as he could when he played the notes.

"You play very well as well," Venus said after a lengthy pause.

"Thank you." Zoisite could help but wonder why things had to be so awkward between them.

* * *

Mars had spent most of the time in preparation for the wedding on the Moon. She was handling the invitations for the Princess' half of the guest list, and so that gave her the perfect excuse to spend more time away from Earth. She was fairly certain that the excess time spent there by her three comrades had caused them to go insane.

She wasn't particularly surprised that Mercury had warmed up to the planet, she always had been soft. The fact that not one, but two men were interested in her, and the fact that she wasn't exactly doing anything to turn them away worried Mars.

Jupiter didn't shock the Senshi of Fire, either. True, she was tough physically, but she had always been easy to sway in an argument, and the people of earth would see that and use it to their advantage. While Jupiter claimed that there was nothing going on between them, and Mars did trust her on that, she was aware that Jupiter had been spending a fair amount of time with Kunzite. The Tennou was well known for his persuasive abilities.

It was Venus that had Mars truly worried. The one other Senshi that had been in agreement with Mars that there was nothing good about the planet or it's inhabitants, especially the men. And who had Venus been spending more time than necessary with? An Earth man. And now she was even hesitant to voice any disapproval over those... creatures.

The fact that the Senshi leader could be corrupted was the main reason that Mars kept herself on the Moon unless absolutely necessary. She would not fall victim to the Earth's spell as the other Senshi had.

Mars was on her way to report to Queen Serenity on the guest list. Things had been going as smoothly as expected. Most of the guests able to hide their disappointment in such a union and agreed that they would attend. Others, when told that this wedding had the Queen's blessing, resigned that they too would attend, for a short while. While the pleasantries may be a bit forced by some, everything looked like it would run smoothly.

"Is something troubling you?"

The familiar voice of the Queen caused Mars to stop in her tracks. She was surprised to see the queen away from her business at this hour. "It's nothing serious, my Queen," Mars replied with a short bow.

"Why don't you tell me about it?"

The Queen had a gentle voice and a calming presence. Even though she was the Queen of the Silver Millennium, she had always allowed the Senshi to be less formal in certain situations. This was one of those times. Mars and the other Senshi often looked to the queen as a sort of mother figure. "I'm worried about the other Senshi, my Queen."

"Oh? And why is that?"

They walked down the hall together. The tall windows showed the gardens as well as Earth on the horizon. Mars stopped then and looked at the blue planet. "They're becoming... I don't know. It's like Earth has put some kind of curse on them."

The queen was silent for a moment, and Mars continued to look at the planet with a skeptical eye. What was so wonderful about it anyway?

"It can have that effect on some," Queen Serenity finally replied, a hint of sadness in her voice. "But if that is what makes them happy, then I am glad that they can enjoy it."

"My Queen?"

The queen turned then and faced Mars, looking at the Senshi with a most serious face. "Both the Earth Kingdom and this one were almost destroyed recently. We are all very fortunate to be in the situation we are now. These are peaceful times again, and I want everyone, in both kingdoms, to share in that peace. The fact of the matter is, these kingdoms will soon be linked and will one day be one. Perhaps it is time to stop looking at the people of Earth as outsiders."

Mars was quiet then. So even the Queen was beginning to show weakness. Perhaps that was bound to happen as her only daughter had also been caught in the Earth's grasp.

"However," Queen Serenity added, "I will admit that I am glad to see that you are spending your time here. It had been rather quiet lately."

Mars smiled, "thank you my Queen. If it isn't too much trouble, would I be able to discuss the guest list with you?"

"Of course, Mars."


	3. Chapter 3

Serenity sighed as she stared out at the horizon as the sun set. The colours of the sky at this time were beautiful she found, but that was not what she was looking for.

"Princess?"

Serenity turned, surprised to find that she was not alone on the balcony of the Earth palace. "Mars, what are you doing here?" she asked. She had not seen Mars much lately, so her company was unexpected, but not at all unwelcome.

The Senshi of Fire stepped out to the railing and looked out, seemingly curious as to what had captured the Princess's attention so. "Your mother misses you, she had not seen you in several weeks."

The Moon Princess felt a little guilty about this. It was true, she had spent very little time away from Endymion, and her mother had remained on the Moon as its ruler. Serenity herself was feeling a bit torn between the two kingdoms. She was both the Princess and heir to the Silver Millennium, and the future Queen of the Golden Kingdom. Perhaps she had been spending too much time on Earth.

When she didn't reply, Mars continued. "Since Prince Endymion is expected to be away for a short while, perhaps now would be a good time to visit?"

"I was hoping he would return tonight..."

"Princess?"

Serenity shook her head. "No, you're right, Mars. I should go and visit my mother."

Mars smiled. "I'm sure she would like that."

Serenity turned to leave the balcony, but not before taking one last hard look at the horizon, just in case she spotted her love. Sighing inwardly when she did not, Serenity resigned to returning to the Moon.

Silently, the two women walked through the Earth palace, Serenity leading the way. They remained silent until they reached the court yard and prepared for teleportation.

"Is my mother angry with me?" Serenity asked quietly.

"Angry? No, she simply worries about you and misses your presence, Princess."

"And what about you, Mars?"

Mars paused. "Princess?"

Serenity turned and faced her friend, well aware of Mars' feelings towards the Earth. "Are you angry with me?"

"Of course not, Princess!" Mars exclaimed, suddenly on the defensive. "I would never..."

"We do truly love each other," Serenity continued, feeling the need to explain herself to Mars. "And all the people I've met from Earth are kind as well. Their ways are a bit different, but they aren't the evil beings you seem to think they are!"

Mars was quiet for a moment, and Serenity wondered if perhaps she had said to much. In truth she didn't know what Mars thought of the inhabitants of Earth, just had just assumed the worst.

"I don't... I don't think of them as evil," Mars said quietly, avoiding eye contact with the princess. "I just..." Mars paused while she collected her thoughts. "I am happy for you, Princess. I know that the two of you will be happy together, and I wish you the best. It's just that I don't think the the rest of us, the Senshi, should be getting so comfortable just yet. We still have a duty to perform, and we shouldn't be getting sidetracked by men, either from Earth or the Moon."

"Mars..." Princess Serenity whispered, unable to say much more.

"It's true," Mars continued, "I'm not convinced yet that the majority of Earth men are as civilized as the others claim they are, but maybe... after our duties are complete, and it's what makes them happy..."

Serenity understood just how hard it was for Mars to speak those words. Serenity herself had been taught from a young age that the people on Earth had much to learn about civility and manners, and that no Earth man would compare to those the Moon had to offer. Her opinion had changed however when she met Endymion, and following that his own guardians, and then the people of Earth. In reality, they were no different from the people of the Silver Millennium. Their traditions and customs varied, but deep down there were no differences.

Serenity smiled and held Mars' hands in her own. "I do understand how you feel," she said, "and I thank you for understanding me as well. Perhaps with time we'll be able to see closer to eye to eye."

Mars smiled as well, "perhaps."

* * *

Nephrite's vision was blurring as he tried to focus on the enemy in front of him. This one was proving to be more of a challenge than he had anticipated. The other man looked back at him, trying to gauge just how much more he could take before raising his hand in a signal.

"Another round!"

Nephrite tried to prepare himself for his seventh glass of... what had Okano called it again? He couldn't even remember. All that mattered was that he beat him in this competition. Okano had drank him under the table last time, but Nephrite was a bit bigger now, and Okano was a bit older. He could do this.

"Are you sure you can take it, old man?" Nephrite asked, purposely trying to provoke the town's representative.

Okano raised an eyebrow. He didn't look at all fazed by the alcohol. "I was raised on this stuff, boy. Don't you start going and thinking that you can take more than me. I've got forty years of drinking experience on you!"

"You're barely even thirty-eight," Nephrite said, still able to perform basic math in his head.

Okano appeared to think about that for a moment. "Well, this stuff counts for double!"

The drinks arrived and Nephrite regarded his with some contempt. It tasted like shit, but got you drunk fast. He picked up his glass and let Okano make the seventh toast.

"To... to that red-haired bitch! May she burn in Hell!" he cheered. This got a response from the rest of the tavern, equally thrilled by such an exclamation.

Nephrite just shrugged his shoulders and then down the glass of clear liquid. He took a look behind him then, checking in on the Master.

Endymion was sitting at a table by himself, the same drink in front of him as an hour ago. Everyone in the tavern had come over to him at least once, but it seemed that he preferred to be alone in a quiet corner. Nephrite noticed that his gaze was focus on a couple on the other side of the room, Jadeite and one of Okano's adopted daughters.

Nephrite himself suddenly took an interest in the couple. They seemed to be getting along well, smiling and talking, not drinking much. If Nephrite's perceptions weren't completely off, he would have said that the girl was pushing things forward more than Jadeite was. She was listening intently to his every word, clasping his hands in hers, and a couple times she reached across the table to brush her fingers through his hair or across his cheek.

Finally Nephrite heard what could have been Kunzite's voice in his head. Jadeite shouldn't be getting this social with a woman.

He turned back to Okano, who had apparently not noticed or not cared about Amaya getting well acquainted with one of the Shitennou. "Excuse me," Nephrite said as best he could, "I'm just going to check on Master Endymion."

He got up and staggered his way over to the Master's table, gaining his attention as he sat down rather roughly. "I can break it off, if you want," he said, motioning rather obviously towards the two.

Endymion looked back at Nephrite a but confused. "Why would I want you to do that?" he asked, looking back at the pair. "If anything develops out of this, I am overjoyed to say the least. I want the four of you to start finding your own lives."

"Master?"

"Nephrite, you can't swear to protect me forever. There will come a time when I don't need you four anymore, and it may be sooner than you think. Serenity and I will be married soon, and then we will be starting a family. Once we have a child, I would be more concerned with finding him or her four of their own guardians. The four of your will be freed from your duties at that point."

Nephrite understood this, even though the idea of having his own life was rather difficult to grasp. "Yes, but Master, that time is not here yet. Jadeite still has his duties..."

"Are you Nephrite or Kunzite?" the Master asked, "because you look like the hot tempered member of my guardians, but you are sounding like the one obsessed with duty."

Nephrite shook his head. The Master was right. Why did he have to sound so much like Kunzite when he was drunk? He looked back over at Jadeite, who had since noticed that he had and audience. He said something to Amaya quietly and then started to stand up, but Nephrite raised a hand to stop him, and apparently the Master did the same thing. Jadeite paused for a moment, and then sat back down. Amaya giggled a bit, but was happy to see that she would still have Jadeite for company.

"So, how are you feeling?" the Master asked, changing the subject.

"I'm alright," Nephrite replied, "he's a bit more of a challenge than I would have liked."

"Is that so?" the Master replied with a sly grin, gesturing behind Nephrite.

Nephrite turned and looked back at the table he had been seated at earlier. Okano was still there, but passed out on the table, and empty glass rolled on its side as if to solidify Nephrite's victory. He jumped to his feet and raised his hands in the air, resulting in a round of applause from the other patrons.

* * *

The night had passed quickly, and Endymion and his guardians had been provided with the best housing possible in the circumstances. Okano Hiroshi had the largest house in the town, and it was still mostly in one piece, so they had spent the night there.

When morning came, Endymion had no difficulty getting himself out of bed, but had to kick Nephrite several times before he would even respond. Hungover probably didn't even begin to describe what Nephrite was going to be feeling.

The King then looked over at the third body in the room. Jadeite had still be awake when he went to bed, so there was no way to tell how long he had stayed up with Hiroshi's daughter. "Time to get up, Jadeite," Endymion said, giving the young man a little shake. Kunzite would let them have it if he had been here.

"Mmm? What's wrong, Master?" Jadeite asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes.

"Nothing is wrong, it's just morning. We still have a lot of things to do before we head back."

"Oh right." Jadeite sad up and started to look for his uniform and Endymion turned back to Nephrite, who hadn't made as much progress.

Playfully, Endymion gave the red head a few more jabs with his foot. That got a more interesting response.

"What the hell is your problem?" Nephrite growled before opening his eyes to look up at his King. His eyes widened and his face paled when he realized his mistake. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was you."

Endymion just laughed. "Will you get up already?"

Once he was certain that his two guardians were well enough on their way, Endymion decided to take a walk outside. Yesterday he had taken a look at the town with Hiroshi, but he wanted to look around a bit on his own, talk to some of the people without the old man around.

He was aware of course, that most of the town had been in some degree of intoxication last night, but that didn't seem to stop some of the people from getting on with their day, unlike some people he knew.

A young family caught Endymion's eye. A woman was working at moving the pieces of what used to be her home while her two younger children ran around playing. She whipped her brow as she took a breather for a moment and then returned to lifting the heavy pieces of stone.

"Let me help you with that," the King offered, taking the load off her hands before she could object.

"Your Majesty, you don't have to do that!" she said after Endymion had set the stone down where he figured she had be moving it too.

"The reason I'm here is to help the town with getting back on its feet," he explained, going for the next piece. "And I can certainly help you with the larger pieces here."

The young woman looked a little uncertain about how she should proceed in this situation, but did offer her thanks.

After Endymion had moved the second piece he paused for a moment to observe the children. A girl and a boy had been running around with sticks which they pretended were swords, but now they just stared at the regally dressed man helping mommy out. Smiling, Endymion crouched down on one knee and gestured for them to come over. "And what are you two playing?" he asked with a smile.

The girl seemed a bit shy, but the boy was happy to explain. "I'm a knight! And she's the scary witch!"

"I'm not a witch! I'm not a witch!" the girl protested.

Endymion chuckled. "And what do you want to be when you grow up?" he asked the boy.

"I want to work in the castle and protect the King like my daddy!"

Endymion was amused by the fact that they didn't recognize him, but turned his head towards the woman in question as to who their father was.

"Komuro Katsuo," she said quietly.

Endymion knew the name. "I'm sorry," he mouthed back. Obviously she hadn't been able to tell her children yet. Komuro-san nodded and returned to her work and Endymion turned back to the kids. "I'm sure you will be," he said lightly. "But for now, why don't you help your mother with some of the work. Becoming a swordsman means more than just waving a sword around, it takes hard work."

The young boy nodded enthusiastically. "Can I see your sword first?" he asked.

"Of course." Endymion detached the scabbard from his belt and drew the sword out for the children to look at.

"Wow..." the little girl said in awe, impressed as much as the boy was.

"Do you protect the King too?" he asked.

Endymion returned the sword and sheath to his belt with a smile. "Do you want to know a secret?" he asked.

Both children nodded.

"I am the King," he said in a low voice. Both children looked up at him with wide eyes and he got to his feet again. "Now, why don't you go and help your mother?"

They nodded again, but continued to look over at him at every available moment. Endymion was suddenly looking forward to children of his own.

* * *

Jadeite was disappoint when the Master told them that they had to leave. He really liked Amaya, and in all honestly was starting to feel attracted to her. She was beautiful, easy to talk to, and really kind. They had been up most of the night talking to each other about almost every topic under the sun. It had been difficult at first, since she didn't have much memory from before the attack, but she was very interested in what he did and liked. He had never had so much ease in talking to a person before, not even with the Master.

"You have to leave?" she asked, looking at him with sad eyes.

"I'm sorry," he tried to offer, "but I still have my duties."

She nodded understandingly, but clung to his hands regardless. "Will you be able to come and visit soon?" she asked.

"I... don't know." Jadeite looked over at his shoulder. Nephrite and the Master were waiting for him. The Master turned and asked Nephrite something, but Jadeite couldn't hear them. "I want to," he said, "but with the preparations for the wedding and everything..."

Before Amaya could reply, the Master had come over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Master, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm going now."

"Hold on, Jadeite," the Master said and then turned to Amaya. "If you wanted to come with us, we are looking for people to work as maidservants. You would be provided with room and a respectable wage if you are interested."

Jadeite just stared up at the Master. He was offering Amaya a job? She could live in the palace? Jadeite was absolutely shocked that he would go so far for him.

Amaya appeared just as surprised. "You mean it?" she asked. "I could live in the palace?"

The Master nodded. "If that's alright with your father."

Amaya looked over her shoulder at Okano, who was standing close enough to listen. "That's fine with me if that's what you want, so long as you keep in touch with us."

Without warning, Amaya turned and wrapped her arms around Jadeite in joy. He wasn't particularly sure how to react to this in front of the others and as a result just kind of stood there dumbly. He could already hear Nephrite laughing at him.

"I'm so happy!" Amaya exclaimed as she pulled away. "I'll pack my things quickly."

She ran off into the house, and Jadeite gave the Master a smile. "Thank you," he said.

"Don't mention it."

True to her word, Amaya returned quickly with a small bag of her belongings. If Jadeite hadn't known better, he would have thought that she had already packed, she returned so quickly.

"Have you ever ridden a horse?" Jadeite asked, taking her back and and attaching it to the saddle.

"I'm not sure..." she replied, a common answer for her to give to questions about herself.

Jadeite pulled an extra saddle blanket from the bag. It was soft enough to work as an extra seat and he placed it on his horse behind the saddle.

"I'll help the young lady up," Nephrite offered.

Jadeite mounted the horse and with Nephrite's help they get Amaya comfortably seated behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist tightly. "Are you OK?" he asked.

Amaya replied that she was and Nephrite and the Master got on their horses as well. After saying a few quick final good byes, and promises to send more men the next day to help with the clean up, the group took off.

They rode slowly at first until they were certain that Amaya was comfortable with the ride, but eventually got back up to a more brisk pace.

Jadeite wasn't able to talk to her much along the way, but thankfully the ride was short. They got back to the palace before night fall.

Attendants saw to the horses and Jadeite carried the small bag Amaya had come with. "I trust I can leave you to get Amaya settled?" the Master asked.

Jadeite nodded and excused himself, leading Amaya into the palace first. She appeared awestruck by the size of it, and then later by everything inside, from the carpeting, to the artwork, to the chandeliers. "It's amazing," she commented several times. "How can you possibly find your way around in here?"

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Jadeite said. He knew there were several spare bedrooms not far from his own, and so he made his way towards those ones. Amaya would probably want to be close to him while she got used to the place. "Here, if you're fine with this room, you can have it."

He pushed the door open and let her have a look. Amaya was shocked, it seemed to be better than what she had been expecting. "This is all mine?" she asked. "This is huge!"

"You're fine with it then?" Jadeite asked.

"Yes! This is wonderful, thank you!"

Jadeite stood in the doorway while she had a look around. The outer room had a coffee table, sofa, and chairs and attached was the bedroom with a single bed. "I can show you the rest of the palace if you like."

Amaya returned from her quick tour and deposited her bag on one of the chairs. "I would like that."

They closed the door behind them and started down the hall. "The bath isn't far and it has everything that you would need. The dining room that you would use is a bit farther, but-"

"Where do you sleep?" Amaya asked, interrupting.

"I'm just down the hall," Jadeite said, gesturing in the opposite direction.

Amaya paused and looked a bit shy for a moment. "May I see it?" she asked. "I'm just curious as to how grand the chambers of one of the Shitennou must be."

Jadeite saw no problem with that, and so the duo changed direction, arriving at his door a moment later. He unlocked the room and opened the door for her, allowing Amaya to step inside first.

It was then that he realized that this was the first time he had had a woman in his room, and was suddenly self conscious of the mess. "I'm sorry, I'm not the neatest person..." he said when she noticed the papers and clothing strewn about.

"I don't mind," she said. "Wow, and I thought my room was huge."

"The bedroom's there," Jadeite said, gesturing to one door, "and I have a private bath in there."

Amaya took her time looking around and Jadeite waited patiently. She looked into the bath first, and then looked back over at Jadeite to see if it was alright to look at the bedroom. He nodded his approval and she peaked her head in the door, seeing the large bed and wardrobe.

After she closed the door, Amaya returned to wear Jadeite was waiting. She took her time and looked thoughtful. "Thank you for letting me have a look around," she said, looking up at him.

She stood in front of him, rather close. It took Jadeite a moment to get words to his mouth. "You're welcome," he said, a bit quieter than usual. He didn't know why, but his heart rate had suddenly picked up.

They seemed to stare at each other for an eternity, but then finally Amaya made a move. She closed her eyes and pressed her lips to Jadeite's.

Jadeite returned the kiss eagerly. Her lips were so soft and he could breath in the scent of her hair. As they continued to kiss, he slowly brought his hands to her shoulders and then around her back, holding her close.

Amaya wrapped her arms around his waist as well and seemed to be the one pushing forward suddenly. She depended the kiss and pressed closer to him.

Jadeite was familiar with the reactions overtaking his body and uncertainty and embarrassment suddenly replaced the joy. "Amaya..." he whispered, breaking the kiss as he looked away. His breathing had deepened and he felt his face flush. Why did his body have to react like this? He didn't want to scare her away.

It took him a moment to realize that she hadn't pulled away from him in the least. "It's alright," she said, "I know it's forward of me, but we can if you want to."

Jadeite thought that for sure he had misheard that. He turned his head back to look at her and she was smiling up at him. "But..." he trailed off. They had only met yesterday, and he had never even kissed a woman before now.

"I don't want you to think poorly of me," Amaya continued, "I've never done this either, I don't think." She reached a hand up and placed it on his cheek. Her skin was cool compared to his. "But this feels right, doesn't it?"

He had to admit, she had a point there. Jadeite had never met anyone like her before. The longer they stood like this, the more his body screamed at him to go forward. "Are you sure?" he asked, looking down into her dark brown eyes.

"I am," she nodded, and then brought her lips back to his.


	4. Chapter 4

Sailor Mercury was busy with the preparations for the upcoming wedding, it was only six weeks away, which wasn't much time. The plan was to have the ceremony itself outside, and then move everyone inside for the party afterwards. Mercury was heading for the dinning hall to make sure that there would be adequate seating for all the guests, followed by a proper amount of seating for the dance which would follow.

A door opened in front of her, and Mercury paused. She was certain that the room belonged to Jadeite, although she'd admit that parts of the Earth Palace were still a maze to her. To the Senshi's surprise it was not Jadeite, or even one of the Shitennou the exited the room, but rather a girl. Maybe she was further off on her knowledge of the palace layout than she had originally thought.

"Good morning," she offered the girl.

The girl jumped, startled by Mercury's greeting as she closed the door. Slowly she turned a shade of pink and she looked from Mercury to the door and back again. "I... um..."

It took a moment, but then something clicked. Mercury had been right that it was Jadeite's room, and this girl with her slightly disheveled hair and embarrassed look at been caught leaving the bedroom of one of the Shitennou.

The girl took a few steps towards Mercury, and then spoke in a hushed tone. "Please don't tell anyone that you saw me come out of here," she pleaded. "I don't want to make trouble for him."

Mercury was reminded of something Mars had said once. "The minds of Earth men are centred around one thing and one thing only. Physical pleasure."

Even so, Mercury didn't want to jump to conclusions, even though it was painfully obvious to her what had happened the previous night. "I won't say anything," she promised. There really was no reason to, what went on behind closed doors was not her concern.

"Thank you!" the girl exclaimed. "I'm sorry, excuse me."

And with that, she hurried down the hall. Mercury watched her leave, and then with a shake of her head, she continued on her way.

She walked quickly through the Earth Palace, eager to get on with her work. As she turned a corner she ran right into another person. The papers she had been carrying had gone flying, and she herself fell backwards onto the ground.

"Are you alright?" a deep voice asked as Mercury tried to get her bearings back.

"Kunzite! I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

The leader of the Shitennou held out a hand and helped the Senshi to her feet, then he proceeded to help collecting the papers. "Where are you off to in such a rush?" he asked.

"Oh, just to double check on the seating arrangements in the halls."

Kunzite was certainly a handsome man, Mercury noted. Tall, strong, and she loved the sound of his voice. "I apologize, I'm not sure on the order," Kunzite said as he handed the papers he had collected back.

Mercury shook her head with a smile, "it's fine, I can arrange them again."

Kunzite also had a gorgeous smile. Friendly, and at the same time it often looked like he was keeping something from you, like he knew something that you didn't. Mercury didn't quite understand what she liked about it so much, just that every time he did smile, she got this excited little feeling in her stomach. "You were heading to the dinning hall, correct? I'll walk you there."

Certainly nothing to complain about there. She quite enjoyed Kunzite's company. "What are you plans for the day?" she asked as they walked.

"A meeting in a few minutes with the other Tennou, then I have to find Sailor Jupiter to finalize the flower arrangements. I should have a few minutes to myself this afternoon, I don't suppose you would be free?"

Mercury thought for a moment. "I could probably free up some time. Why? Do you need my help with something?"

Kunzite stopped walking for a moment, and Mercury paused as well. Curious, she looked up at the man and into those pale brown eyes of his. "Not exactly, although I wouldn't mind taking you out to the garden and showing you what we picked out."

Mercury could feel the heat rushing to her cheeks. He was smiling again, in that same way. "I suppose that would be fine," she stammered. "Perhaps after lunch then?"

"After lunch would be perfect," he said, placing his hand lightly on her shoulder for a moment. "I'll see you then."

Just as Kunzite turned away and headed off in his own direction, Mercury caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head just in time to see Nephrite look away from her and head down the hall himself. He was angry, she could tell by how he stormed off. Could it be true what Jupiter had said? That both Kunzite and Nephrite had an interest in her. No, that couldn't be right. Nephrite was just always angry, and Kunzite... Mercury couldn't be sure what Kunzite was thinking.

* * *

Kunzite was still smiling when he got to the conference room they normally held their weekly meetings in. Zoisite was already in his regular seat, and Kunzite was the second to arrive.

"How is the music coming along?" he asked as he sat beside his second-in-command.

"Faster than I thought it would," Zoisite replied. "She's talented."

Kunzite raised an eyebrow at this, but didn't comment further.

Nephrite walked into the room next and took his seat across from Zoisite. Kunzite noticed that Nephrite was making a point not to look at him, and he wondered what he had done this time to piss off the man.

The trio waited in silence for the fourth and final member of the meeting to show up. Jadeite was never late, in fact none of them ever were. "Where is he?" Kunzite finally asked the question. Neither of his two comrades had any answer, and Kunzite decided to wait a few more minutes.

Jadeite finally did show up about fifteen minutes late. His face paled when he looked at Kunzite, and he quickly took his seat across from the leader. "I'm sorry," he muttered.

"And where were you?" Kunzite asked, a bit annoyed at having to wait.

Jadeite avoided the eyes of everyone in the room. "I slept in," he said quietly.

Nephrite turned in his seat to look at Jadeite in amazement. "Slept in?" he asked.

"And why did you sleep in?" Kunzite knew that Jadeite was hiding something, and he was going to find out what it was.

Jadeite continued to look down at his hands, guilt for something all over his face. "I didn't fall asleep until later, I'm sorry."

He wanted to move on, so he was trying to get the others to stop their questioning before they hit the bullseye. Kunzite had no intentions of giving up. "Jadeite, you are going to tell me what is going on. Why didn't you fall asleep until 'later'?"

Nephrite sat up in his chair. Kunzite saw a look of wonder on his face that caught his attention. Nephrite knew something. "Were you up with Amaya again?"

"Amaya?" Zoisite asked, finally speaking.

"A girl from Kurokawa that we met yesterday. She and Jadeite hit it off rather well, and the Master invited her to the palace for work."

Kunzite looked back at Jadeite, his eyes narrowing this time as Jadeite had turned a shade of pink and was attempting to sink back in his chair. "Jadeite, what is he talking about?"

"She's just someone I met..." Jadeite replied quietly, his voice shaking noticeably.

"Don't tell me..." Nephrite said, studying Jadeite intently. "You got laid last night, didn't you?"

It took a full two seconds for Jadeite to turn a shade of red that rivaled Nephrite's uniform.

"I knew it!" Nephrite exclaimed.

"Nephrite!" Kunzite silenced him before turning is attention on Jadeite fully. "Jadeite," he said, his voice full of warning, "I do not need to tell you that your duties come first and foremost. Before personal matters, and especially before women."

"Like you're one to talk..." Nephrite mumbled.

Kunzite's eyes shot across the table. "What did you say?"

"Stop it, both of you," Zoisite interjected. He leaned closer to Kunzite and kept his voice low. "Leave it for now," he advised, "I'll speak to him."

Kunzite preferred to take care of disciplinary actions himself, but perhaps in this case Zoisite would be better suited to discuss the matter with Jadeite. He nodded his agreement, but spoke to Jadeite once more. "I don't want to hear of this happening again, do you understand?"

Jadeite's expression was a mixture of fear and anger. Kunzite couldn't be sure which one, or if both were directed at him, but there was business to move on to.

* * *

Once the meeting was complete, Zoisite made sure that Jadeite stayed in the room while Kunzite and Nephrite exited. Jadeite knew that he was going to be spoken to about his actions, but Zoisite had a different approach than Kunzite. He left his seat and came around to the same side of the table that Jadeite sat at, taking the seat Nephrite had used. He waited for Jadeite to speak first.

"What do you want me to say?" Jadeite asked quietly after a length pause.

"Why don't you tell me about her," Zoisite said, intentionally catching Jadeite off guard.

It was be easy enough to tell Jadeite not to do it again, but to be truly effective, Zoisite preferred to know what was going on inside his head. He preferred to use reason rather than punishment. They were all loyal to the Master, so there was really no need to punish anyone if they forgot their duties for a brief moment. Jadeite only needed to be reminded of what they were.

"She's... beautiful," he began. Jadeite had always been more at ease in Zoisite's presence, something Zoisite would use to his advantage. "She lost her memory during the battle, and Okano-san found her just outside the town. When we met, something clicked and everything just seemed to make sense." Jadeite had this far off look in his eye, a look Zoisite knew how to interpret. "When I'm around her, I just can't take my eyes off her. When she speaks, it's like her words are a spell that I can't escape, and I don't want to."

"You're in love with her."

Zoisite words didn't surprise Jadeite, he nodded in agreement. "I hate being away from her," he said.

Zoisite began to tread cautiously with his next words. "You only met her yesterday, Jadeite."

"I know," he agreed, "it's crazy, but I know how I feel."

"Do you want to resign from your position for her?"

That question gave Jadeite reason to jump out of his chair as he looked at Zoisite with shock and fear, "no!" he exclaimed. "It's not like that! I don't want to resign." Jadeite closed his eyes and inclined his head, "please don't make me."

Zoisite thought that he might break down and cry at any moment. "I'm not going to make you resign," he said reassuringly, "I just want to make you aware of your options. You can't be sidetracked by a woman and still expect to be able to perform your duties."

"So I have to break it off with her?" he asked.

"Not necessarily. So long as you keep your time with her and your time on duty separate, there's nothing to worry about."

Jadeite opened his eyes and considered this. Zoisite knew that their time off duty was rather limited, but it really was his only option. Romance was not something they really had time for right now.

"I understand," he said.

Zoisite smiled, "good, then I'll speak to Kunzite."

Jadeite looked relieved. "Thank you."

The pair stood and made their way for the doors. Zoisite pulled at the handle, but both paused as soon as the door was opened a hair. Nephrite and Kunzite were on the other side, and they were arguing. "Go on," Zoisite urged. "I'll deal with it."

Jadeite nodded, and quickly slipped out the door and headed off in the opposite direction. Zoisite stepped out next, closed the door behind him calmly and then stood and watched the pair.

"It is none of your business," Kunzite growled.

"You're a hypocrite!" Nephrite shouted. "You tell Jadeite he can't see Amaya, and then you turn right around and start smooth talking Mercury."

Kunzite's eye narrowed dangerously at Nephrite, but Zoisite stepped in before anything could come of it. "That's enough," Zoisite said. "If you need to argue, fine, but do it behind closed doors. No one else needs to see it."

Both Nephrite and Kunzite turned to look at the white-haired man. Nephrite turned and walked away, but Kunzite turned as if to challenge Zoisite. He closed the distance between then, standing significantly taller than Zoisite, but Zoisite wasn't going to let him try and intimidate him. "And I don't need you challenging my authority," he said quietly.

"Then don't give me reason to," Zoisite replied, locking his gaze on Kunzite's eyes.

Kunzite broke the stare first, letting out a breath and nodding, realizing that Zoisite was right. "Jadeite?" he asked, changing the subject.

"There shouldn't be any more problems," Zoisite replied.

"Do you know her?"

"No, but I intend to introduce myself. Jadeite's quite taken by her."

"Will you keep me posted about her?" Kunzite requested. "Something just... doesn't feel right."

Zoisite nodded, he too got that feeling when he spoke with Jadeite. The relationship had moved quickly, far too quickly. He had to meet this woman.

* * *

Jupiter smiled to herself from her spot by the window. She had a perfect view of the garden from here, but it was not the flora that held her attention

Mercury and Kunzite had been out in the garden for a good half hour. They had started out by wondering slowly through the paths, but eventually they had come to a stop and sat on one of the stone benches, chatting amicably. It thrilled Jupiter to see the other Senshi gaining the attention of one of the Shitennou, regardless of what Mars had to say. The only other person who spent as much time with Kunzite as Mercury did was Jupiter herself, albeit for very different reasons.

Not only were they in charge of the flower arrangements for the wedding, Jupiter often found a sparing partner in Kunzite. She could find no such challenge on the Moon, as she herself was considered most skilled fighter in hand-to-hand combat. Still, she paled in comparison so Kunzite, and he was a very good teacher.

Kunzite placed his hand on Mercury's shoulder and then leaned in a bit closer. Jupiter's breath caught in her throat as she watched with anticipation, but was disappointed when Kunzite simply stood and excused himself.

Quickly, Jupiter went to the door that Kunzite would be entering though and waited. He walked in a few moments later and spotted her instantly. "Something I can do for you?" he asked.

"I was thinking of kicking you around for a bit," she said with a grin, "unless you're busy."

Kunzite folded his arms over his chest, "you're rather full of yourself. Need I remind you of how quickly you lost last time?"

"This will be different."

Kunzite motioned for Jupiter to follow. Since their first match on the Moon, Jupiter and Kunzite had had a few matches when time allowed. She hadn't exactly won any yet, but she could almost taste the victory last time, before Mercury had walked in looking for Kunzite. Focus was her weak point, she knew this and was determined to correct it.

When Kunzite pushed the doors open to the training room, which differed slightly from the one on the Moon, Jupiter noticed a few men already using the facilities. They gladly provided space however when they saw who wanted the centre mat.

Kunzite took his spot and turned to face Jupiter. "Remember what we discussed the last time, focus and timing."

"Right," Jupiter agreed.

Silently, Kunzite motioned with his hand that Jupiter should attack. She wasted no time, striking out at him with a kick aimed for his chest.

Kunzite didn't dodge, instead he grabbed her ankle and sent her down on the mat on her side.

One fall wasn't going to stop her for long. The Senshi was back on her feet quickly and lashing out in a series of punches. They were expertly dodged as usual, but in a new move, Jupiter quickly spun and launched a high kick at the side of Kunzite's shoulder. To her surprise, she actually made contact. Not enough to knock the man down, but he staggered to the side a few steps.

"Good," he said, raising an eyebrow in surprise. "You're improving."

"Thank you."

The continued back and forth, taking turns being on the offensive. The Senshi of Thunder loved the adrenaline rush a good fight provided, not to mention the valuable skills she was picking up. A year ago, if she had known that she would be taking combat training from an Earth man, she would have laughed.

"I'm curious," Jupiter asked, when the two had decided that a break was in order. "The Sailor Senshi were born into the role of protecting the Princess, but how were you chosen?"

Kunzite passed her a glass of water before responding. "After the Master was born, the King asked a priest to use his abilities to track down guardians for his son. He was looking for men who would have a strong, loyal personality and an ability with magic. I was found first."

"How old were you?" Jupiter asked, genuinely interested.

"Five years."

Kunzite didn't seem to be bothered talking about it, so Jupiter continued. "So you began training at that age?"

"Yes, Zoisite and Nephrite joined me about a year later, and Jadeite... well he wasn't even born yet. He was found a few years later, barely out of infancy. Individually, once we were each deemed to have enough skill with a weapon, we took our oaths."

"Oaths?" The Sailor Senshi had never done such a thing.

Kunzite nodded. "We swore loyalty to the Master. As well, although it was nothing that was necessary as none of us would consciously harm our Master, if one of us did, if we left behind our duty and did something that could cause harm to him, our lives are forfeit."

Jupiter was shocked by this. "So, if you were trying to protect him from something, but he was accidentally injured in some way..."

"No," Kunzite shook his head, "a deliberate action. Say, for instance, if I turned my sword on him."

Jupiter nodded. That seemed a bit more reasonable at least, and of course none of the Shitennou would ever betray him, so it was hardly something they would worry about. "I see."

"The Senshi, I assume, have no such system in place?" he asked. He set the empty glass down and leaned back against the wall. His attention seemed split between listening to Jupiter and watching the soldiers who had reclaimed the centre mat.

"No," Jupiter replied. "As I said, we were born into this. My earliest memories are of my need to serve Princess Serenity."

Kunzite nodded. "If you'll excuse me, I think I have some work to do here," he gestured to the soldiers.

The Senshi nodded. "I'll find you again."


	5. Chapter 5

How many times in the past few weeks had he found them together? It seemed as though everywhere he turned, there was Kunzite chalking up a few more points with Mercury. It pissed Nephrite off, Mercury deserved so much better than him. She was so innocent, and Kunzite could sweet talk her right into his...

Nephrite clenched his teeth in anger at the thought. He balled a fist and slammed it into the wall of his room. Like hell was he going to just sit around and watch that happen.

He stormed out of his room, once again off to pick a fight with his leader. Zoisite could take his advise and shove it, Nephrite didn't care where Kunzite was or what he was doing at the time, he was going to hear Nephrite out on this one.

A few quick words with one of the servants pointed Nephrite towards the training room. Not an uncommon spot to find the man, and Nephrite took off in that direction.

He swung the double doors open and was about to rip into Kunzite, right in front of whatever number of soldiers happened to be in the room at the time, but he stopped cold. Kunzite was in there alright, with Mercury.

Since when did Mercury ask for training? Jupiter he knew about, but this must be part of Kunzite's scheme to get close to her.

"Stand with your legs a bit further apart," Kunzite instructed her on her stance. "Good, and raise your right arm a hair."

Mercury followed his instructions perfectly, and then successfully dodged and blocked the punches he threw at her.

"Much better," he complimented. "Now this time..."

"Nephrite?"

Hearing his name suddenly, Nephrite turned his head and found Jupiter leaning against the wall. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"It's none of your business," he muttered, and looked back at the couple on the mat. Nephrite's blood began to boil as Kunzite stood behind Mercury to "help her adjust her stance". Bullshit. He turned and walked out of the training room. He would have slammed the door behind him his Jupiter hadn't caught it and followed.

"Nephrite, wait up!"

He didn't want to talk to the Senshi right now, he just wanted to blow off some steam. He picked up his pace and ignored the girl behind him, until she ran to catch up with him and jumped in front. "Hold up," she said.

"I told you to leave me alone," he said, the volume of his voice raising.

Jupiter folded her arms. "Look, it's obvious that you like Mercury, why don't you talk to her? She doesn't have a clue."

Like her? Where had Jupiter gotten that idea? It just pissed him off seeing Kunzite take advantage of her. That didn't mean anything. "You haven't got a clue," he replied, figuring that she wasn't going away easily. "Kunzite's an ass, and I hate to see someone like Mercury get drawn into him."

Jupiter tilted her head a fraction, "so why don't you tell her that."

"I can't," Nephrite said before stopping himself. Every time he wanted to speak to her his voice would freeze up for some reason. It was like she had this powerful aura, and the closer he got to it, the more difficult it became to function. Speaking left him first, then his ability to move. If he was standing next to her, the simple act of breathing became a labour.

"And why not? If you really think that Kunzite is a poor choice for a lover for Mer-"

"I said I can't!" Nephrite said, his voice unreasonably loud. He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself as best he could, but his words were still edged in anger. "You talk to her, tell her what I said. He's no good, he'll just... use her."

Before Jupiter could reply, Nephrite turned and walked away, his footsteps echoing loudly down the hall.

* * *

Jadeite knew that he had fallen in love with Amaya the moment he laid eyes on her, but those feelings were nothing compared to what had developed in his heart over the past couple of weeks.

His whole day revolved around her, even when he couldn't see her. They would wake up together, eat breakfast, and then both go their separate ways for the day. She was working as a maidservant now, and seemed to enjoy it. Jadeite continued his duties, but his mind was always occupied with Amaya. What was she doing now? Where was she in the palace? How much longer until he could see her again?

Jadeite no longer cared that Nephrite teased him about it, and he seemed to be giving it up now anyway. Perhaps the teasing was boring when the target didn't care.

Zoisite and Kunzite were still watching him like hawks, and this did bother him. Had he not proven himself by now? He was still doing his job, so what was the big deal if he happened to share his chambers with someone now?

No, not just someone. Jadeite had no one to compare her to, but she was the love of his life. He had trouble remembering what life was like before Amaya, even though that was only two weeks ago. How did he manage to sleep alone at night back then? He couldn't remember ever looking forward to anything at the end of the day. How did he just go from day to day like that?

There were some days when luck would allow them to run into each other during the day. If Zoisite and Kunzite weren't around, Jadeite would allow himself a few moments with Amaya. Really, what harm did it do to spend a few moments with her? Although, sometimes those moments would actually turn into hours, even though they would fly by in an instant. Jadeite had no idea that time could move so quickly when he was with her.

As he was on his way to meet with a few members of the Senshi and the other Tennou, Jadeite spotted Amaya speaking with some of the other girls. Besides them, no one else was in the hall. Good, he had a few minutes then.

One of the girls pointed him out and Amaya came running over. "Jade! I'm so happy to see you."

He didn't mind her using the shortened version of his name in private, but she seemed to forget sometimes in public. He cleared his throat as he took a quick look around. They girls were leaving, there was no one else.

"Oh right!" she remembered, "sorry."

"It's alright, how's your day been?"

"Good so far. Yuki wanted me to go and socialize with some of the other girls tonight, but I'd rather be with you." She flashed her smile, the one that could sell Jadeite on almost anything.

"I miss you during the day," he said, risking a caress on her cheek.

She leaned into the contact, "I miss you too."

Jadeite stole another look behind him and then down the hall behind Amaya. The coast was still clear and so he leaned down and captured her lips in a quick kiss. It left him wanting so much more, but that would have to wait until later. "I need to go..." he said quietly, not wanting to keep either Zoisite or Kunzite waiting. They would come looking.

"Wait," Amaya stopped him, "there's one thing..." She leaned in to whisper something in his ear and it happened again.

Jadeite couldn't explain it, but there were times when he was with her that his whole world would suddenly become such a blur. It was like everything disappeared except for her, and it happened whenever she whispered those words in his ear. He couldn't even tell what they were, just that he loved being able to lose himself with her in these moments.

There was no palace, no one waiting on him, just Amaya.

* * *

"Where is he?" Kunzite's question sounded more like a threat to Zoisite, but the meaning was clear. They were waiting on him again, and this time it had been a full half-hour at least. "I'm going to find him."

"Stay here," Zoisite said, "I'll go."

"I don't think so, you're too soft on him," Kunzite replied.

Perhaps Kunzite was right, but there was something about this that had them both worried. Zoisite had seem Amaya a few times with Jadeite. She looked like a perfectly normal girl, but there was something... odd about her. She had a strange aura that Zoisite couldn't explain. Stranger still was how Jadeite seemed so entranced at times when around her. If Zoisite didn't know better, he'd say that he had seen this before...

"If he's with her then I want to see how close I can get without them knowing. Something about this isn't right and we both know it. I want to figure out what that is."

"Fine, but I'm going with you."

Zoisite shook his head. They were far enough away from the others that he could speak his mind. "I know you're angry with him over this, but ripping into him when we do find him is not going to do any good. No offence, Kunzite, but I don't trust you to keep quiet if we do find Jadeite with the girl."

Kunzite's eyes narrowed. "You have some nerve..."

Zoisite had never been intimidated by his leader, and he wasn't about to start now. "If you want to pull your authority on this one, go ahead, but you know I'm right."

There was a pause, and Zoisite was honestly surprised by Kunzite's decision. "Let's go."

He shook his head, but lead the way to find Jadeite. Kunzite was difficult at times, but Zoisite had just learned how to work with him. Unlike some members of the Shitennou, Zoisite didn't see the point in putting up an unnecessary fight, even though it would go much smoother without Kunzite present.

Zoisite moved slowly down the hall, and thankfully Kunzite stayed behind him and kept the pace. Jadeite should have been in the east wing of the palace, and so they moved through that section. What would they see when they found them? Zoisite almost hoped that they would find something suspicious. He didn't want to believe that Jadeite was so irresponsible on his own.

A voice down the hall cause Zoisite to pause. It was a woman's voice and she was speaking softly. He signalled with his hand that Kunzite should stay quiet and slowly moved down the hall until he reached a corner and then peeked around it.

It was Amaya and Jadeite, and thankfully Amaya's back was to Zoisite and Kunzite. Zoisite looked back at Kunzite to make sure that he wasn't going to attack Jadeite, and then turned back to watch the pair. Amaya reached out to Jadeite with her hand and cupped his cheek with her hand. There was something odd about Jadeite's eyes. He looked dazed.

Careful to watch his step, Zoisite crept around the corner and tried to get a bit closer. He still couldn't hear the words that were being spoken. Amaya was whispering.

As he inched closer he picked up the occasional word. "Soon... help... finally mine..."

Jadeite's eyes were what interested Zoisite the most. Jadeite really should have seen Zoisite by now, but he was completely focused on Amaya. Curious, Zoisite moved his hand in a sort of wave to get Jadeite's attention. Nothing, he didn't even blink.

Short of walking right up to the pair, Zoisite didn't think he was going to get much closer, so he decided to try something else. "Jadeite," he said, allowing his authority to come out in his voice.

Amaya jumped and turned quickly. "Zoisite!" she exclaimed, and then turned back to Jadeite quickly.

Interestingly, Jadeite still hadn't reacted to Zoisite's presence. He looked mildly confused, but he was still looking at Amaya, or was until she said something to him, unintelligible to Zoisite.

"What?" Jadeite asked, looking around himself confused. He was shocked to see Zoisite standing in front of him, and apparently Kunzite had stepped forward as well.

Jadeite paled as he looked from one superior to the other. He had been caught red handed and didn't know how to react. Zoisite looked to Amaya then, suspicion in his eyes. She was controlling him in some way, he was sure of it, he just couldn't prove it.

"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, "I pulled him away from his work, it was my fault!"

"Jadeite," Zoisite spoke slowly, "go with Kunzite, I want to speak to your friend." He turned his head to look back and Kunzite and shook his head, silently telling Kunzite to leave him be for now.

"It's... not really her fault..." Jadeite said, trying to defend her actions. "I just..."

"Go."

Jadeite's eyes widened, unused to be spoken to in such harsh tones from Zoisite before. He looked briefly at Amaya and apologized before following Kunzite.

Amaya looked innocent enough, but Zoisite just knew that she was acting. He felt a chill go down his spine when he felt her aura. It was... familiar. "Who are you?" he asked.

"Kurokawa Amaya... I'm just a..."

"Who are you really?"

She shook her head, feigning innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm really sorry, I just really love-"

"You had him hypnotised didn't you?" Zoisite pressed with his interrogation.

Amaya's lower lip began to quiver and her eyes watered. "I... I don't know what you mean! I was just talking to him." She reached a hand to her mouth as she tried to stifle a sob. "I didn't mean to make things difficult for him. I really just want to get along well with all of you..."

Zoisite's lips drew in a thin line. Her emotional display was having an effect on him whether he liked it or not. "I'll be watching you," he warned and then followed after Jadeite and Kunzite.

Could he have been imagining it? Maybe he just wanted all of this to not be Jadeite's fault. She did seem sincere just now, but that aura felt very dark to Zoisite. Perhaps there was someone who could help him figure this out.

* * *

Sailor Mars closed her eyes and felt the heat of the nearby flames on her skin. In recent days she had begun to feel uneasy about something, and the flames were doing little to help her understand what could be causing it.

A small shrine existed just outside the Moon Palace. It was its own building, separate from the home of Queen Serenity, but close enough that Mars could walk their easily to consult her element. She could find quiet here and ease her mind most of the time as she was often undisturbed. That would change today.

A soft tap on the door directed Mars' attention away from the fire. A palace attendant stood at the door and bowed when Mars turned. "I'm sorry to bother you, but you have a visitor from Earth."

"Earth?" she asked, truly confused. To her great surprise, one of the Shitennou, Zoisite, walked up to the door and stopped at the entrance.

"May I speak to you?" he asked as the attendant took her leave.

Mars may not have had much respect for Earth men, but this strange turn of events had her curious at least. She stood and left the flame, joining Zoisite outside. "What can I do for you?" she asked.

"We're having a... possible problem on Earth. I was hoping for your assistance."

Mars furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "And why would I want to do that?" she asked.

"Palace security may have been breached, and if so, my Master as well as his future Queen may be in danger."

This had Mars' attention now. "What do you mean?" she demanded.

"I can explain on the way."

Mars agreed and followed Zoisite. He spoke of a girl that two of his fellow guardians had met in a nearby town. She had become romantically involved with one of them, Jadeite, and moved into the palace. The relationship had moved faster than was typical and she was exhibiting some suspicious behavour.

"Suspicious how?" Mars asked after they had teleported to Earth.

Zoisite took a quick look around and then gestured for Mars to follow before he continued. "It seems to me that she has some magically ability, Jadeite looked hypnotised by her earlier. I have a strong magical ability and I could sense something strange in her aura, but I couldn't explain it. She plays ignorant, but I don't trust her."

Mars listened, but couldn't come to any kind of judgement on the girl based on what one man had to say. "And what do you want with me?" she asked.

"I asked around and as told that you have a strong spiritual sense. I was hoping that I could get a second opinion on the girl from you."

Mars sighed as she continued to follow the white haired man. "This feels like a waste of my time."

"It may be," Zoisite agreed, "but if I'm right, I would think that you would want to protect your own charge as I do mine."

"Has she done anything to threaten the Princess or the King?"

"No, not as far as I've seen or heard."

Mars shook her head, not convinced in the least, but she was here now, and the possibility of making one of these men look like a fool was tempting as well. "So where is she?"

"I'm looking for her," he replied.

Apparently the girl worked in the palace now, and Zoisite knew which section she was supposed to be working in. Finally the pair came to a pause and Zoisite directed Mars' attention to a small group of girls in matching maid outfits. "The one with light brown hair is Amaya."

Immediately Mars felt a chill as she looked at the girl. She smiled and talked with her friends, but what Mars could sense from her was something else all together. There was something cold and dark inside this girl.

Seeming to notice that she was being watched, Amaya turned and looked over in Mars' direction. Mars' eye widened in shock when she made eye contact with Amaya. Evil. That was the only word that came to Mars' mind. Outwardly she looked like a shy girl, self conscious now that she had people watching her. She nodded skittishly in their direction, and soon the group of girls moved off in a different direction. Mars was left shaking with what she had felt.

"So there is something?" Zoisite asked.

"Yes," Mars agreed, "I've never felt anything like that..."

"No? The feeling I got was actually familiar. Her aura, the way she interacted with Jadeite, I've seen it before, but... it's impossible."

Mars looked at the man. "What's impossible?" she asked.

Zoisite took a breath, still looking off in the direction the girls had gone. "She reminds me of Beryl," he said, much to Mars' surprise.

Beryl? She was dead, Queen Serenity had made sure of that when she used the Ginzuishou. Impossible, as Zoisite said. Either way, Mars knew that she didn't want that girl anywhere near her Princess. "I need to consult the flames, but I trust that you won't like this girl near the Princess?"

"I plan to watch her closely," he replied. "Please keep me informed of what you find."

Mars agreed and then hurried back to the palace. It may take a while to get answers from the flames, so the sooner she began, the better.


	6. Chapter 6

Jadeite slammed the door to his chambers closed behind him and then leaned back against it. He was angry. Angry at Kunzite, at Zoisite, and more than anything at himself. After he had been caught with Amaya, Kunzite had let him have it and then felt the need to breath down his neck for the rest of the day.

"How are you doing?"

Jadeite looked up, surprised to see Amaya already in the room. She wasn't scheduled to be finished for another hour. "I've been better," he said, running a hand through his blond curls. "Gods, Kunzite can be such an ass." Then he remembered that Amaya had been left with Zoisite, and he hadn't been in a good mood either. "Was Zoisite hard on you?" he asked. "I'm sorry I got you in trouble."

Amaya shook her head. She was seated in one of the armchairs, but stood and made her way over to her lover. "He accused me of some things and followed me for most of the day..." she said, "and it's not your fault, I kept you longer than I should have."

"Accused you of what?" Jadeite asked, wrapping his arms around Amaya's waist. What was Zoisite thinking?

Amaya shook her head, "nothing that isn't true to some extent. Let's not talk about that now." She looked up at Jadeite, her arms around his neck. "I think we both need something to take our minds of things..."

In truth, Jadeite wasn't really in the mood. "I'm sorry," he said, detangling himself from Amaya, "it's just.. I don't know who I'm supposed to be angry at. Them or me." Once free, Jadeite plopped down on the sofa. "I know I should be more responsible, but they don't have to be such..."

He felt Amaya crawl onto the sofa beside him and he let her start to undo the clasps on his jacket. "They're just doing their job," she said, "you can hardly blame them."

Jadeite sighed, "So it is my fault."

Amaya helped him out of the garment and urged him to turn around. "I didn't mean that," she said, "they just don't understand." She began to massage the muscles in his shoulders and back.

Jadeite nodded and closed his eyes. He was starting to feel a bit better at least with Amaya rubbing his back.

"How late does King Endymion usually stay in the throne room?" Amaya asked suddenly.

Jadeite was confused by the sudden change of subject. "Why do you ask?" he said.

"No reason, I was just trying to change the subject."

She was always doing everything in her power to make him comfortable and happy, Jadeite really couldn't have found a better woman. "Until sunset usually."

Amaya stopped massaging his back and hugged Jadeite from behind. "Then we don't have much time left," she said cryptically.

Jadeite took a moment, but what she said just didn't make any sense. He turned his head around to try and get a look at her. "What are you talking about."

She wore a small smile as she leaned in close. "You'll see," she whispered, and then she said those words that he could never remember. The world blurred again and all he could see was Amaya. "You'll see," she said again, and Jadeite could remember nothing that followed.

* * *

It had been an exhausting day for Kunzite. Thankfully the day was almost over and he was just heading back to his room.

Jadeite was still bothering him however. Speaking with him privately about responsibility and duty as a Tennou had done nothing to change Jadeite's mind. He was too enchanted by this woman to see clearly.

"You piece of shit!"

Kunzite stopped. The statement was most definitely directed at him because the words had been spoken by Nephrite. He turned around slowly, but he would have turned much more quickly if he had known that Nephrite had thrown a punch at his face.

Kunzite stumbled backwards and raised a hand to his mouth. A small blood stain marked his glove where Nephrite had managed to split his lip. He moved to block quickly when Nephrite continued his assault. Normally he was a much more skilled fighter than Nephrite, but Nephrite had caught him off guard and surprised him in attacking him in such a manner.

Finally managing to get a decent hold on Nephrite, Kunzite twisted his arm behind his back far enough to just cause Nephrite a bit of pain. "What the hell has gotten into you?" he asked.

"Screw you, bastard! I know what you did!"

Kunzite rolled his eyes and threw Nephrite to the ground. "What did I do exactly?"

Nephrite spit at his feet. "Amaya told me what you did to Mercury. She found her crying this morning."

Kunzite was truly confused. "You're not making sense, Nephrite. What the hell did Amaya tell you?"

Nephrite got to his feet and looked like he was ready to fight again. "Don't play stupid, I know that you had her in your bed last night. That you tricked her into it." Nephrite shook his head, "she didn't want to..." And with that he threw himself at Kunzite again.

Nothing Nephrite had accused him of was true. He hadn't even seen Mercury last night, let along slept with her. He didn't have time to try and figure out where Nephrite was getting this information however as he had to defend himself from a series of punches and kicks.

Nephrite was fighting erratically, his anger was driving him. He wasn't going to see reason, and the only option Kunzite had was to fight back. He blocked the punches, dodged the kicks, and then launched a few of his own.

Kunzite was surprised that Nephrite managed to hold his own for a while. The attack, block, counter-attack pattern continued for several minutes as they two fought in the middle of the hall. It didn't take long for someone to notice.

"Stop it you two!" Sailor Venus yelled at them.

Kunzite only took note of her position to make sure that she didn't get hit in the fight. Jupiter was with her. He had no time to think about how this looked, his only objective at the moment was to subdue Nephrite.

* * *

Princess Serenity smiled when Endymion announced that he would be retiring for the evening. She was looking forward to relaxing with him at dinner and then a bit of time privately before going to their separate rooms.

The throne room cleared out slowly as the people who had not had their business heard would have to wait until tomorrow. Serenity was very impressed with Endymion's ability to take over as king so smoothly. He occasionally turned to his Shitennou for advise, Zoisite usually made himself available as he had today, but for the most part he knew what needed to be done.

"Thank you," he said to Zoisite.

"It's never a problem, Master."

Endymion sighed, "some of the richer citizens can be difficult at times."

Serenity choose not to comment on that, as did Zoisite it would seem. She just smiled as she remembered how Endymion had put that one Lord in his place when he complained about the small amount of damage done to his property. "You have plenty of funds on your own to repair such trivial damage," Endymion had said, "the people who need help are those who have no homes to speak of and no money."

Once all of the people had finished exiting, Endymion stood and Serenity followed suit, but the doors to the throne room were flung open again. Serenity was shocked to see Mars running forward.

"Mars, what's wrong?" she asked, stepping off the dais and down to her guardian.

Mars looked up at Zoisite and then back at Serenity. "Princess, there's a problem."

"The girl?" Zoisite asked, stepping forward as well.

Mars nodded. "I don't know what she is but... she's like Beryl."

"What?" Endymion asked, joining the trio. "What girl?"

"Amaya, Master, the girl that came back with Jadeite."

"But she's just..."

"She's dangerous," Mars interrupted. "Princess, I think we need to get the Senshi together, you might be in danger. If this girl-"

"Did someone say my name?"

Serenity and the others looked up and standing in the doorway was a girl that Serenity had never seen before. She wore the uniform of the maids in the palace and had light brown hair.

"Amaya..."

She casually strolled into the room and immediately both Mars and Zoisite jumped in front of Serenity and Endymion.

"Stop right there," Zoisite said.

"Or we'll be forced to attack you," Mars continued.

Amaya did stop, but she laughed to herself. "Look, my love, they think they stand a chance against me!"

Serenity was shocked to see Jadeite step into the room as well. He stayed beside Amaya, and it looked to Serenity that he planned to defend her. "What's going on?" She asked, stepping closer to Endymion.

"She's controlling him," Zoisite explained. "He's hypnotised."

"Hypnotised?" Serenity looked up at Endymion, but he was focused on the scene in front of him.

"Surely you aren't going to attack your friend," Amaya continued to challenge.

"If you plan to use Jadeite against us, I won't hesitate if I need to attack him. He wouldn't want this."

"Now, why don't you step aside, Senshi, I have no interest in your Princess. In fact, you are free to take her and leave now."

Serenity didn't want to leave Endymion behind, but it would seem that everyone else in the room wasn't going to give her a choice. "Take her and find help," Zoisite whispered to Mars. "Kunzite and Nephrite should be nearby."

Mars paused for a moment, but then turned and grabbed Serenity's hand. "Come with me, Princess."

"But, Endymion!"

"Go with her, we'll be fine," the king replied.

Serenity tried to hold back a moment, but Mars was dragging her from the room.

"That's a good girl," Amaya said. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of him."

"Ignore her!" Mars called back, "we'll find the others and bring them some help."

As much as she didn't want to leave, Mars was right. If this girl was like Beryl, they would need help and quickly. Serenity stopped fighting and ran along side Mars to find Nephrite and Kunzite.

* * *

Zoisite held his position in front of the Master. He wondered just what "like Beryl" meant. It could refer to her powers, her personality, her obsessions...

"Step aside, Zoisite,' she tried to order him.

Zoisite said nothing and shook his head. He looked over at Jadeite, his eyes were empty and vacant. He watched what was happening without actually seeing it. Zoisite doubted that he would even remember this when he came too. If he came too.

Amaya turned her head and spoke to Jadeite. "I want Endymion, get him for me."

Jadeite didn't reply, but he did begin to walk forward. Zoisite drew his blade. When he told Amaya that he would fight Jadeite, he wasn't bluffing. They had all sworn oaths to protect that Master at the cost of their own lives or the lives of the other Tennou. If need be, Zoisite was prepared to kill any of his fellow Shitennou, Jadeite was no exception. Hopefully it would not come to that.

"Jadeite, stop," he ordered, but Jadeite didn't hear him. He continued forward, unafraid, probably feeling nothing.

Zoisite stepped forward and grabbed Jadeite's arm to stop him. Jadeite did pause, and looked Zoisite in the eye for a brief moment. A chill went through Zoisite as he looked into those dull blue eyes. This was more than just hypnosis, Jadeite was possessed.

Before Zoisite knew what was happening, Jadeite had pried his arm free and then had Zoisite flying into the wall several metres away. Zoisite was stunned for a moment while Amaya laughed.

"Did I forget to mention that he's got a teensie little bit of Metalia's energy in him right now?" she asked.

He struggled to get to his feet. Pain was not something he had time to feel, he had to protect the Master from Jadeite.

Jadeite had not moved since. He watched Zoisite get to his feet first and then turned back to the Master.

The Master hasn't moved much, and he only backed away a step when Jadeite approached. "Jadeite, stop this, can you hear me?" He had his hands out, but didn't look like he was willing to defend himself. Amaya must want him alive, and so Jadeite wouldn't do anything to harm him.

"Master, your sword!"

He shook his head, "I can't hurt him!"

Jadeite would reach him in a matter of moments. Using what strength he had, Zoisite charged and then released an energy blaste directed from his blade at Jadeite.

Without any apparent effort, Jadeite raised his hand and seemed to catch the blast. Zoisite watched in shock as the energy left his dagger and seem to swirl in front of Jadeite's outstretched arm. He cut the energy, but Jadeite maintained it, and then with little emotion, flung it back at Zoisite.

He tried to block it, but he didn't have enough time to gather his energy and the blast struck him in the chest. Zoisite was thrown back into the wall and this time just struggled to maintain consciousness. Breathing was difficult and his vision was beginning to blur. He was vaguely aware of the Master calling out to him, but Jadeite had since reached him. From what he could tell, Jadeite was holding him while Amaya approached him. Zoisite tried for force himself to stand, but he could barely even lift his head.

"You have some stubborn guardians," Amaya said. "Well, _some_ stubborn guardians. Jadeite is quite easy to work with."

"What do you want, Amaya?" the Master asked.

Zoisite tried again to stand when Amaya reached the Master, but he only managed to succeed in falling forward. Amaya looked his way briefly before smiling back up at the Master. "Well, that won't do. You don't even know my real name."

"Your real name?"

"Silly, do you really think that the name that old man gave me was my real one?" She reached up and tapped a finger against the Master's lips. "My name is Mio. After all, you should know the name of your future queen."


	7. Chapter 7

Mercury was drawn down the hall by what sounded like a fight, but she was completely stunned by what she saw. It wasn't just any two men fighting, it was Nephrite and Kunzite.

Venus and Jupiter were also present, and they yelled at them to stop, but understandably they weren't ready just yet to try and separate them physically. Mercury knew that the two Tennou didn't get along so well, but this was completely out of the ordinary for both of them.

"What's going on?" the blue haired Senshi asked her friends, concerned for the two men. She didn't want them to hurt each other.

"We just got here, same as you," Jupiter replied, "but I think you might be able to get them to stop."

"Me? Why me?"

"Just try."

Mercury was confused, and Venus looked at Jupiter with a similar expression. Looking back at the two men, Mercury could see that this wasn't going to end any time soon. "Both of you, stop it!" she yelled, hoping that they could hear her.

Neither of the Tennou responded and Mercury looked over at Jupiter once more. The Senshi of Thunder urged her to try again.

"Kunzite! Nephrite! Stop this!"

That got Kunzite's attention at least. He paused and looked over at Mercury. Unfortunately, Nephrite did not respond in like and got a good shot in at Kunzite's jaw. Kunzite grunted and slammed into the wall.

"Kunzite!" Mercury yelled, this time running forward to help the man. She looked back at Nephrite, who had also stopped now that Mercury was between the two of them. She turned back to Kunzite and saw that his lower lip was swollen and bloody.

"I'm fine," he insisted, pushing Mercury away from him gently.

"You should get that treated," she said, knowing full well that he wasn't going to take her advice.

"What the hell has gotten into you?" Kunzite asked Nephrite, who seemed to be frozen in place.

Nephrite looked from Mercury to Kunzite and back again. "You mean... he didn't..."

"What happened, Nephrite?" Mercury asked, but she wasn't allowed enough time for a response.

Mars and the Princess came running forward. The pair looked the group over quickly with some curiosity, but got down to business quickly. "King Endymion is in danger," she said.

"What?" Kunzite asked, immediately focused on Mars.

"It's this girl, Amaya, she was with Jadeite, she's..."

Mars wasn't even able to finish her sentence before Kunzite bolted in the direction of the throne room. The rest of the group followed, and Mercury tried to get as much information out of Mars as she could before they got there. "What's happening?"

"I'm not really sure, but this girl is dangerous. The flames told me she is linked to Beryl."

That couldn't be good. Kunzite reached the throne room ahead of everyone and burst in before waiting. Mercury thought that it might be best to pause for a moment and get some kind of plan together, but there was no helping that now.

"Princess, you shouldn't go back in there," Mars said.

"I am not leaving Endymion!" she almost screamed.

"Princess, it will probably be dangerous," Mercury tried to explain.

"I don't care, I am going in there."

They didn't really have time to argue. Kunzite and Nephrite were already in there, and Mercury wanted to help them. "Just stay back, Princess, we can't let you get caught up in this."

The five girls entered together, with Princess Serenity taking up the rear. Mercury made sure that she stayed close to her.

* * *

Endymion breathed a sigh of relief when his two remaining Tennou entered the room. Zoisite was down, though thankfully alive. He continued to try and force himself to stand, but he hardly had the strength.

Jadeite was currently standing beside him, and had one of his daggers to Endymion's throat. He didn't sense any real danger, but he didn't move just in case. If Amaya, or rather Mio, wanted him as a husband, he wasn't much use to her if he was dead.

"Throw down your weapons!" Mio shouted at the Tennou, using Endymion as a hostage. "If I can't have him, no one will."

OK, so maybe there was some danger. "Don't listen to her!" Endymion yelled at Kunzite and Nephrite from across the room.

"Jadeite! What are you doing?" Kunzite yelled.

Of course, the youngest Tennou didn't reply. Endymion knew that he was being controlled, but Kunzite and Nephrite would not.

"Jadeite has proven to be quite useful," Mio explained, "he was easier to control that I expected. Now, drop you weapons."

Kunzite and Nephrite glanced at each other once before dropping their swords and kicking them out of reach.

"Good," Mio smiled, "now, the three of us are going to walk right out that door, and no one else is going to get in our way, right?"

It was then that Endymion spotted Serenity. She had entered with the Senshi and had been hiding behind them. Damn it, why hadn't they kept her from here? The last thing he wanted was to see her get hurt.

"Stop, please!" Serenity yelled. The Senshi tried to hold her from walking forward. "Why are you doing this?"

Mio laughed. "Oh, it's nothing personal Princess, I just happen to have a thing for your fiance. Not to mention being Queen of Earth." She motioned with her hand, and Endymion felt a push against his back and Jadeite forced him to move forward slowly. The dagger never left his throat, and while Endymion wouldn't have been against trying to free himself, he just couldn't bring himself to hurt Jadeite.

"Venus Love-Me Chain!"

Endymion flinched when Venus' attack came flying towards them. It had been aimed at Jadeite, but just like with Zoisite's attack, Jadeite managed to stop it in mid-air and fling it back at the Senshi.

Venus screamed as she was hit with her own blast, knocking her to the floor.

"There has been quite enough of that," Mio commented, moving to stand closer to Endymion and Jadeite. "Princess, order your Senshi to stand down if you don't want to see Endymion hurt."

All eyes were on Serenity then. "I..."

"There is no attack that anyone in this room can create that Jadeite will not be able to block. You'll only end up hurting yourselves."

"Serenity! Get out of here!" Endymion yelled. "You shouldn't be here!"

"I am not letting you go, Endymion!"

* * *

Mars had slowly started inching herself around the side of the room. Venus' attack had given her enough of a distraction to get far enough around that she was to Amaya's side. Attacking Jadeite was useless, that had been proven, but Jadeite was not the real enemy.

Carefully, Mars readied one of her o-fuda. She would only have one shot at this, so she had to make it good, and before her Princess ordered her to stand down.

Amaya took a step forward and continued to taunt the Princess. The angle was perfect now.

"Akuryou Taisan!"

The o-fuda flew straight, but Mars was not expecting Jadeite to react so quickly. He left Endymion's side and jumped in front of the scroll, stopping it as he had stopped everything else. It disintegrated in his hand. Mars could only stare in shock.

"That's my boy," Amaya praised him as he returned to holding Endymion, who had not attempted any escape. Earth men are idiots. "Now, does anyone else want to take us on, or are we free to leave yet? I assure you that I will kill him if you do not stand aside."

Jupiter and Mercury looked to each other and the Princess. They were the ones closest to the door, but it didn't look like they planned to move any time soon.

Nephrite and Kunzite stood on opposite sides of that trio. They would probably mount a physical attack once Jadeite was close enough.

Venus was back on her feet at this point, but looked uncertain. It wasn't the Senshi's job to protect the Earth's King.

Zoisite was still down, but he seemed to be gaining strength again. He had managed to push himself up on his knees, but was in no shape to be readying an attack.

"Stand aside," Amaya ordered again. Still, Jupiter and Mercury held their ground, albeit a bit more determined this time. Mars wasn't sure how good of an idea that was, but she didn't have anything better.

Amaya looked over her shoulder, "Jadeite," she said simply, giving an unspoken order.

Jadeite's hand moved. The dagger he had been holding to Endymion's throat moved away and was flipped up in the air. He caught in again expertly, and then slashed a warning across Endymion's left arm. Endymion cried out in pain and surprise and Jadeite's weapon returned to the king's throat.

"I didn't want to hurt him, but you gave me little choice," Amaya said.

"No!" Serenity screamed, once again trying to run to Endymion's side. Mercury and Jupiter held her. "Don't hurt him!"

"Then move out of my way!" Amaya shouted back at her.

"I won't let you hurt him..." Serenity said, her voice taking on a darker quality. Mars stared at her. She had never heard the Princess speak like this before.

A bright light engulfed the Princess then. Bright enough the Mercury and Jupiter had to release her in order to block the light from their eyes. Mars covered her own eyes as well, but trying to see as best as she could.

The Princess had changed somehow. Mars couldn't see the details, but it looked like she wore a sailor fuku now, as well, her hair had changed in style and colour. It was difficult to see in detail as the white light was so intense.

"Get away from him!" The Princess yelled again, but her tone was so foreign that Mars didn't think it could really be her Princess speaking.

Everyone in the room, including Amaya and Endymion were staring at her in shock. The Princess raised her arm, and Mars could have sworn that she now held a short sword as well. What was going on?

In a panic, Amaya launched an attack of her own directed at the Princess. None of the Senshi were ready for it, but apparently the Princess was. Swinging her weapon in the shape of a pentagram, she was able to hold the energy and then directed it back at Amaya.

It struck home, or at least Mars thought it did. Amaya screamed and then disappeared.

* * *

Slowly the world came into focus for Jadeite. The first thing he noticed was a bright light in front of him slowly fading. He looked around and saw that he was in the throne room. Hadn't he just been in his chambers with Amaya?

Next, he noticed that he was standing beside the Master, and was holding his dagger to his throat. He immediately dropped the weapon and it clanged noisily on the floor. "What... what was I..." he backed away from the Master slowly and then noticed the blood on his king's sleeve. Slowly his eyes fell down to his blade once again and saw that it was indeed stained with his own Master's blood.

His knees gave out from under him and Jadeite collapsed to the floor. He was finding it difficult to breath as realization began to set in. He didn't know how he got here, but he had hurt his own Master, had held him at knife point. How could he do such a thing?

He was aware of several people standing over him then. Kunzite kicked the discarded weapon out of his reach and then grabbed the second one he wore on his belt. Jadeite didn't fight him, he knew what Kunzite was doing.

"He's fine now, Kunzite," Jadeite heard the Master say above him. Jadeite kept his eyes focused on the ground, too shocked to do or say anything.

"I'm not taking any chances."

"Master, are you alright?" Zoisite's voice asked, his slow footsteps approaching the group now as well.

"I'm fine, and you?"

"Getting better."

Had he done something to Zoisite as well? Jadeite couldn't bring himself to look up at him.

The white clad Tennou knelt down beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Jadeite, do you know where you are?"

Jadeite nodded.

"Do you know what just happened?"

Again, Jadeite nodded.

"You remember?"

This time he shook his head. There was a pause while the quartet around him contemplated what to do next. "Talk him to his chambers for now, we'll decide what to do with him after," came Kunzite's order.

Jadeite felt his stomach knot, he knew what this meant. The Master gave a short protest, but seemed to resign quickly. Jadeite swallowed difficultly as Zoisite's tried to pull him to his feet. Jadeite was still quite shaky and the two of them would have fallen back to the floor again if Nephrite hadn't caught his other arm.

"I'll take him," Nephrite offered, "you're still weak."

"I'll be fine," Zoisite protested. "I want to speak to him."

"I'll go with you," an out-of-place female voice offered. Jadeite caught sight of an orange fuku out of the corner of his eye. Venus?

She took Jadeite's other arm from Nephrite and wrapped it over her own shoulders.

"You don't have to," Zoisite protested.

"I want to help you," Venus replied, "you were hurt the most."

Jadeite flinched at the comment. He didn't know how, but he just knew that Zoisite's injuries were his doing as well. How could he have hurt those closest to him?

"Jadeite, can you walk?"

Again, Jadeite silently nodded, and the trio moved slowly out of the throne room and down the hall.

He knew what punishment his actions would give him, and even though he had never feared death, Jadeite was scared none-the-less. He wanted to know what had lead to him committing such an act before he faced the consequences of it. The last thing he remembered was being in his room with Amaya. Amaya... Where was she?

Zoisite opened the door when they reached it, and Jadeite was brought to the sofa. Zoisite sat beside him, and sounded rather winded from the journey.

"Can I get you anything?" Venus asked.

"Perhaps a glass of water for him," Zoisite replied and Venus left the room.

Slowly, Jadeite looked around the room. Amaya wasn't here. He knew that Zoisite wouldn't want him to ask, but what did it matter now? "Where's Amaya?" he asked quietly.

A slight pause before Zoisite answered, "Jadeite, what's the last thing you remember?"

"I was here, with her. I had just gone off duty."

"And then you woke up in the throne room?"

Jadeite nodded.

Sailor Venus returned and offered Jadeite the glass. He took it and managed to look up at her face briefly. She looked concerned for him, and so he looked away. Why should they be concerned for him after the things he did?

"Amaya's gone,' Zoisite finally replied.

Gone? Jadeite could feel panic building inside him. "Where is she?" he asked again, this time his voice sounded more urgent.

"Jadeite, I need you to think back. When the two of you were together were there ever times when you would-"

"Where is she?" Jadeite repeated his question, but this time his voice had risen. He turned in his seat and looked directly at Zoisite. "Did you do something to her? Is she hurt? Was she arrested as well? Where is she!?"

Despite his outburst, Zoisite's expression didn't change. "She's been using you, Jadeite. She's a witch, like Beryl."

The older Tennou reached out his hand and rested it on Jadeite's arm, but Jadeite slapped it away. "No, she's not. She's..."

"Over the past couple of weeks, she's been gradually putting you under a spell. Where there times when you were together that you have trouble remembering? Perhaps like earlier today when we found you in the hall together?"

Jadeite could haven't sworn that his heart had stopped for a few seconds. Those words she would whisper to him that made the world go all fuzzy. But no... she loved him and he loved her, she wouldn't...

"I need to know what she did to you."

It hurt, it hurt so much. Jadeite could feel the tears falling down his face, but did nothing to stop them. She was supposed to have loved him... she said that she loved him. When they were together, it was like there was no one else in the world. When they made love, it was the most beautiful thing he had ever experienced.

"She wouldn't do anything like that!" Jadeite screamed. "She wouldn't..."

Zoisite said nothing, but tried to comfort Jadeite again. He replaced his hand on Jadeite arm and offered him a handkerchief. Jadeite snatched the cloth and whipped his eyes, but they were damp again within seconds.

"What she did to you was cruel," Venus said quietly from her seat nearby. "She mistreated you, used your emotions against you. Love is a very powerful emotion that shouldn't be used in such a way."

Amaya wouldn't do those things, would she?

"Would you like some time alone?" Zoisite asked.

In truth, Jadeite was scared to be alone right now. He shook his head in the negative. Anything would be better than being alone, even Zoisite yelling at him for being with Amaya.

"I need to go and see the Princess," Venus said quietly. "You'll be alright with him?"

Zoisite nodded and Venus took her leave. "Be strong," she said on her way out. "You'll get through this."

With the Senshi gone, Jadeite felt a bit more relaxed. He continued to cry, he just couldn't stop himself from doing that. He must look so pathetic to Zoisite right now.

"What did I do?" Jadeite asked after a long silence.

"I don't know if that's the best thing to talk about right now."

"Please, I need to know."

Zoisite nodded and sat quietly for a moment. "In truth, I don't know everything. We'll be meeting later tonight to go over everything that has happened. I was in the throne room with the Master when he finished his business for the day. Mars came in and told us what I had already begun to suspect, that Amaya was dangerous.

"She came into the room then with you following behind her. Your eyes were... dark, dim. I could tell that you weren't in control of your own actions. When I stood between the Master and you, she ordered you to attack me. She had given you power, Metalia's power, and you had no trouble getting passed me.

"Amaya, or rather Mio, had you hold the Master. She intended to leave the palace with him. The others tried to attack you, but you were able to deflect their attacks without the slightest difficulty.

"Something happened with the Princess then that I don't even understand. Somehow she was able to defeat Mio. I don't know if she was killed or simply teleported away."

Jadeite hoped that it was the latter. "The Master's arm. I cut it, didn't I?"

"Under Mio's spell, yes."

Jadeite brought his feet up and wrapped his arms around his legs, burying his face in his knees. Zoisite stroked his arm, and Jadeite had to admit that the comfort was appreciated. "I'm going to be... punished, aren't I? I attacked the Master."

"No," Zoisite said softly, "you won't be."

His response confused Jadeite, as Jadeite was well versed in the laws, particularly those that apply to the Shitennou or anyone who would attack the king. "But I..."

"Your actions were not your own doing, Jadeite. You won't be blamed for them."

"Kunzite took my weapons and said that I'm not to leave my chambers."

"It's only a precaution, until we know what kind of spell Mio had you under."

"Mio?"

"It's Amaya's real name."

"But she doesn't remember her real name."

Zoisite sighed. "She's been lying to you, to everyone, from the beginning. We're going to investigate and see what we can learn about her."

Jadeite peaked over his knees at Zoisite. He felt a bit of relief when he saw that Zoisite wasn't angry with him and knowing that he wasn't going to be executed was also comforting. "What happens now?"

"We're going to try and piece together what happened and what we know about Mio. Anything that you can remember or tell us about her or your relationship would be helpful. I need to go and talk to Kunzite, I'll come back a bit later."

Zoisite began to stand, but Jadeite reached out before he had a chance and wrapped his arms around Zoisite. "Wait, please! I don't want to be alone."

Zoisite looked down at him, confused and concerned. When he finally did return the gesture, and gave Jadeite a gentle squeeze, Jadeite was surprised by just how much better he felt.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Zoisite promised. "But I have to take care of some things."

Jadeite nodded and slowly released Zoisite. He didn't understand why the idea of being alone frightened him so much, but as he watched Zoisite walk out of the room, the emptiness Jadeite felt in the room told him for certain that Amaya wasn't going to be coming back.


	8. Chapter 8

A search of the palace grounds had turned up no sign of Mio. Venus was relieved to hear this first piece of news at the meeting, but at the same time, that meant that they still didn't know the girl's fate.

All four Senshi, along with three of the Shitennou, the Princess, and King Endymion were seated around the long conference table. Jadeite was still confined to his chambers until it could be determined that he was no longer a threat. Venus felt terrible for him, but it was difficult for her to offer her support when she barely knew the man.

"Master, Nephrite, you were the first to meet Mio, tell us what you can about her," Kunzite asked, after giving the update on the search for her.

King Endymion spoke first. "She was adopted by Okano Hiroshi. As I recall, he said that they found her outside shortly after the battle against Beryl ended. She claimed no memory of anything up to that point and he took her into his home.

"She was harmless looking and seemed rather interested in Jadeite from the moment we meet her. The two seemed to get along well and stayed together for pretty much the entire time we were in the town. When it was time to leave, she looked so sad to see Jadeite leave, and he didn't look particularly happy with the prospect either. Since we were looking for help in the palace, I offered her the job."

Kunzite nodded. "We'll send someone to question Okano-san about her." He then looked over at Nephrite.

Nephrite just shrugged. "That's about it. Like the Master said, she looked harmless."

Curious, Venus decided to speak up. "Did she approach Jadeite first?"

Nephrite shook his head, "no, not really. I'd say that they became interested in each other at the same time."

Venus looked over at the king, and he nodded in agreement.

"Alright, so she came back with you and I assume was given her own set of chambers," Kunzite continued. "Does anyone know when Mio started sleeping with Jadeite?"

Venus was a little surprised by his bluntness, but she could appreciate how he was trying to get to the heart of the matter quickly. To Venus' right, she heard Mercury clear her throat, and she looked over curiously.

"Well... The day after you returned, I happened to be walking in that area of the palace and I bumped into Amaya, or Mio rather, as she was leaving Jadeite's room in the morning," Mercury said quietly. "It wasn't any of my business, and she asked that I not say anything, so I didn't."

"So, then it's probably safe to assume that she moved in right away," Kunzite concluded. "Zoisite, you and Mars became suspicious of her just today, correct? Does anyone have anything worth mentioning from the time Mio first came to the palace until today?"

Venus shook her head. She hadn't even been aware of the girl until today, and it seemed that the feeling was mutual.

"In that case, earlier today, Zoisite and I went looking for Jadeite when he failed to show up for a meeting. This was not the first time he had done this since Mio showed up. He had been late before because of her, but at this point we didn't know the real reason behind it." Kunzite looked to Zoisite to continue.

"We found them together in the hall, and immediately I could sense that something was wrong. Jadeite's eyes seemed vacant, like he wasn't aware of anything going on around him. I was even able to get quite close to him, without either him or Mio noticing until I spoke. Mio said something to him then and he seemed to come to, which was when I first suspected that she had him under some kind of spell.

"I questioned her about it, but she played innocent. I wanted a second opinion, so I sought out Mars on the Moon."

The room turned to Mars then, who continued the story. "I knew there was something off about her when I first saw her, but I didn't know what it was. I returned to the Moon and consulted the flames, and they told me that she was connected to Beryl in some way, but I wasn't able to conclude how. Immediately I returned to Earth and found Zoisite. That was in the throne room right before Mio and Jadeite entered."

* * *

Jupiter had been listening quietly to the information about Mio as it came forth. Putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Until now, she didn't really have anything to add, but she remembered the fight she and Venus had come upon between Kunzite and Nephrite. That would have been happening while Mio and Jadeite were in the throne room. Too convenient, Jupiter thought.

"We should stop here for a moment," she said. "At this point, the Princess, King Endymion, Mars and Zoisite were in the throne room with Mio and Jadeite. At the same time however, Nephrite and Kunzite, you two were fighting in the hallway. It seems odd to me that this would be happening at the same time. What happened?"

The two men looked at each other, and this would have been news to those who had been dealing with Mio at the time. Kunzite spoke first, "Nephrite?"

Nephrite didn't appear to appreciate being centred out by Kunzite on this matter, but he managed to swallow his pride in order to put all the information out on the table. "Mio spoke to me shortly before that. She told me that..." he paused, and Jupiter noted that he looked in Mercury's direction for a moment before decided to change his statement. "What she told me specifically doesn't matter. It turned out to be a lie, and it's purpose was for me to be pissed of at Kunzite enough to want to kick his ass."

"I'll admit that I'm curious to know what she told you specifically, but it's not important," Kunzite replied. "Obviously it was a tactic to keep us busy so that she wouldn't have to worry about dealing with all of us at once, and it worked for a while."

Jupiter nodded, "so she's been planning this whole thing for some time. I wonder how long."

"For now we should focus on what we know, not what we don't," Kunzite said. "Zoisite, Mars, the Master, and the Princess were in the Throne Room with Mio and Jadeite."

Zoisite decided to continue where Mars had left off. "Mio made it clear that she was after the Master from the beginning, and even told Mars and the Princess that they were free to leave. We took advantage of this and Mars got her out of there. It seemed that Mio was hoping that by using Jadeite against us, we wouldn't fight back, but that was not the case, since Jadeite easily overpowered me. Mio said that he had some of Metalia's energy in him, and I would have to believe her."

"Wait, Metalia's energy?" Jupiter decided to ask, "is it still present?"

Zoisite shook his head, "it doesn't look that way, but I won't be certain for a few days at least." He waited a moment before continuing. "It wasn't long after that that everyone else arrived."

"OK, let's just get right to the point, shall we?" Nephrite jumped in as soon as Zoisite had finished speaking. "Princess, what in the world did you do?"

Jupiter, as well as everyone else at the table turned and looked at Serenity. The Senshi of Thunder had seen it as well, or not as well, as everyone else. The Princess had taken a Senshi form and defeated Mio. Jupiter didn't know that the Princess had that kind of power.

Princess Serenity looked around the table nervously, uncomfortable to have all these eyes on her. "I... I didn't do anything..." she said quietly.

"Serenity?" King Endymion asked gently, obviously just as curious as everyone else in the room.

"I saw her too," the Princess answered. "A Senshi with blond hair. She was standing in front of me."

The whole room was quiet for some time. Jupiter searched her own memory. It had been so bright, but it was certainly possible since the bright light could have concealed the Princess entirely. An optical illusion of sorts.

"If that wasn't the Princess," Mars said slowly, "then who was she?"

Venus shook her head. "I know of no Senshi like that."

"I don't like the idea of an unknown Senshi being able to just appear in the palace as she pleases," Kunzite said. Jupiter looked over at him, as he scowled across the table at the other Senshi.

"We don't know who she is either, so don't look at us like that," Venus shot back. "I will consult the Queen on the matter."

"Please do," Kunzite replied. "Back to the matter of Mio, since we do not know her fate, we will be taking extra security precautions around the palace. Zoisite, a barrior blocking her from entering might be in order."

"It can be arranged quickly," the white haired man replied.

"Good. Does anyone have anything else to add before this meeting is adjourned?"

Jupiter could think of nothing to add, and neither did any of the Senshi. After a moment of silence, Kunzite stood. "In that case, I would like to ask the ladies to excuse us for a moment. We have something else that we need to discuss in private."

Jupiter looked to Venus, and she nodded her approval. It was likely that she would like to speak privately to her own Senshi as well.

* * *

Kunzite sat after the five women from the Moon had left the conference room. Zoisite knew that Kunzite would have preferred to discuss this topic away from the Senshi if possible, and thankfully they hadn't put up a fight.

"How is he doing?" Kunzite asked Zoisite, not needed to specify a name.

Zoisite shook his head uncertainly. "He's confused, scared. I haven't been able to get any useful information out of him so far. Trying to come to terms with what Mio did is enough for him at the moment."

"Any idea if he is still under her power? Could she snap him up again if she ever returned?"

Again Zoisite shook his head. "I won't know that for several days at least. I need to talk to him and get him into the piano room, and I'll need him to be level headed at the time."

"Until you know for certain that he is no threat to the Master, he is not to wander around the palace unescorted. I'll leave that determination in your hands however."

Zoisite nodded. It was difficult to be distrustful of one's fellow guardian, but the Master's safety had to be assured.

"Can I see him?" the Master asked after the two Tennou had finished their discussion.

Zoisite looked to Kunzite first. "Not without company," he said. "I'll go with you."

"Emotionally, he's a wreck," Zoisite added. "It might not be best to see him right away. He blames himself for everything that happened."

"I might be able to help with that," the King countered. "Ask if I can see him?"

Zoisite nodded that he would and then looked to Nephrite to see if he had anything to add.

"I'll see him later," the red head said, "Probably best not to crowd him."

"It's probably best," Zoisite agreed. "I'll be going to see him now if you wish to follow, Master."

Nephrite went off on his own, and the three remaining men travelled together to Jadeite's chambers. Zoisite knocked softly on the door and asked the other two to remain out of sight for the time being. He would let them know if Jadeite was feeling up to a visit from the Master.

"Who is it?" Jadeite's voice asked from the other side.

"Zoisite."

"Please come in."

Zoisite opened the door and stepped inside. It didn't look like Jadeite had moved since he had left a few hours before. His eyes were very red, he had likely been crying for most of that time. "How are you feeling?" Zoisite asked, sitting down beside the blond again.

Jadeite shrugged and looked down at the floor. "Anything I should know about the meeting?" he asked.

"I'll recap it for you if you like," Zoisite offered, "but first, the Master is wondering if he could see you for a bit."

Jadeite's eye immediately grew wide with fear and worry. "Why?" he asked in a whisper.

"He's worried about you."

The youth's head shook. "I tried to kill him."

"No you didn't." Zoisite sighed when he saw that Jadeite was sniffling. "He's not angry and just wants a moment. I can send him away if you don't feel like it though."

"He's here?"

Zoisite nodded and then Jadeite silently agreed to see his King, slowly getting to his feet as Zoisite returned to the door to let the Master and Kunzite into the room. Looking back, he saw that Jadeite was studying his feet, too ashamed to look up.

The white clad Tennou opened the door and gestured for the remaining two to enter the room. Kunzite remained with Zoisite near the door, only present to keep an eye on things. Zoisite felt that there really was no real danger, but Kunzite didn't go on instinct, and so they watched.

"Jadeite?" the Master said softly, taking slow steps towards the youngest of his guardians, and the only one younger than himself. "How are you doing?"

Zoisite could barely even hear Jadeite's response of "I'm fine, Master," it had been spoken so quietly.

The Master placed his hand gently on Jadeite's shoulder, trying to comfort him. "I don't want you blaming yourself for what happened, it wasn't your fault." When Jadeite didn't reply to this, the Master continued. "I need you to work hard with Zoisite so that you can return to duty soon, OK?" Still nothing from Jadeite, he continued to look down at his boots while the Master spoke. Finally the Master dropped to his knees in front of Jadeite, thereby getting into his line of sight. "Jadeite, please look at me."

Not given much choice now, Jadeite complied. "Master..." he whimpered in a broken voice. Zoisite knew that he was working hard to control his emotions, but that control wouldn't last forever.

"Master," Zoisite said, hoping that that would be enough to tell the Master that it would be better to leave for now. Jadeite had agreed to see him, but he was obviously not ready for it.

The king stood, but he made sure that he gave Jadeite a gentle squeeze before backing away from him. "Be strong," he said, and then left the room with Kunzite.

As soon as the door was closed, Jadeite sank to his knees on the floor. Zoisite went to him and knelt at his side. "You must be tired," he said.

"I'm not going to sleep," was the reply. Zoisite grabbed Jadeite's arm and helped him to his feet and then guided him back to the sofa. "I can't stop thinking about her."

"When did you realize that you loved her?" Zoisite asked. It was time to get some information, anything to help figure out the spell she had him under. What Zoisite wanted to do was use a few spells of his own to determine if Jadeite was still influenced, but they would need to be at his piano for that, and Jadeite would need a clear mind.

"The second day, maybe the third," he said quietly, pulling his knees up to his chest.

"And she was spending the nights with you then?"

Jadeite nodded.

"Can you tell me what would go on at night? What did you two tend to do?"

Jadeite glanced over at Zoisite, silently asking him if he really needed to know. Zoisite noticed that his cheeks reddened slightly at the question, and so he clarified. "I don't need too many details, but I do need to know."

Jadeite bit his lip and nodded. "She... spent the first night she was here with me," he began.

* * *

King Endymion paused after he and Kunzite left Jadeite's room. Jadeite was in terrible shape, worse that he had been expecting. He understood that Jadeite's actions were not his own, and Jadeite didn't even have memory of them. How could he possibly blame himself for that.

"Master?" Kunzite asked when he hadn't moved or said a word after closing the door.

The king was drawn from his thoughts and looked over at the leader of his guardians. "I want to help him, but I don't know what to do."

Kunzite nodded. "For now we should just let Zoisite deal with him. It will probably be easiest for him that way."

Endymion sighed. "I also don't like him being confined to his rooms when there is obviously no danger. That can't be doing much for his guilt."

"If he is in control of his own actions, then no, there is no threat. But understand, Master, we don't know the strength of the spell Mio had on him. Until we know that she can't resume control of him, he must be kept under guard. It's for your own safety."

Endymion turned fully to face Kunzite. The king stood several inches higher than the Tennou leader and he straightened his posture to take full advantage of them. "I could order you to release him."

Kunzite looked undaunted by this and looked his king directly in the eye when he replied. "When you were still Prince, my authority overrode yours when it came to matters of your safety. Now that you are King, you're right, you can order me to let him go, however I know you won't."

"And why is that?" the King asked, already knowing that Kunzite was correct.

"Because you respect the wishes of your father."

He closed his eyes when Kunzite mentioned the late King. It still hurt to think of him, not only because Endymion had loved his father dearly, but also because he knew that he could never match up to him. The previous king had been good, fair, and wise, and also quite strict in the way he ruled. A harsh set of rules brought order to things, he had explained, and Endymion didn't agree. It was the only thing he never agreed with his father on. Would the responsibility he was born into suffer because of it? "You're right, of course," he agreed opening his eyes, "but that doesn't mean that I agree to this."

Kunzite offered a small smile. "I'm sure Zoisite will have him cleared of Mio's control soon, Master."

"I hope you're right."


	9. Chapter 9

It had been two days since Amaya had betrayed him, and Jadeite was finally coming to understand that fact. She had never loved him and had only used him to get to the Master. Knowing this, however, did nothing to change how he felt about her. He still loved her, and he didn't understand why. It would be so much easier to move on if he could just stop feeling these emotions whenever he thought of her.

Zoisite had come to fetch him early this morning, and escorted him down to the piano room. This was the first time he had left his room since being confined to it, and it was a relief to leave it if only for a moment. According to Zoisite, he was going to take care of putting the barrier in place to block Amaya from entering, then he would begin working with Jadeite. Jadeite didn't understand why he needed to be present for this first task, but figured it was simply more efficient to escort him here first.

Jadeite stood awkwardly in the middle of the room while Zoisite seated himself at the piano. "You are welcome to sit if you want," Zoisite offered, "this may take a while."

Jadeite nodded, but made his way over to one of the windows instead. He leaned against the frame and tried to focus on something outside, something that wasn't Amaya. The gardens, the fields of grass stretching out from the palace, the forest. The sky was cloudless today and the sun would shine down warmly in a few hours.

Soft piano music began to fill the room, and Jadeite found the sounds relaxing as he looked out on the grounds. Slowly the music began to pick up in tempo and Jadeite looked back at Zoisite briefly while he played. His eyes were closed, concentrating fully on the spell he was invoking. It always amazed Jadeite that he could play such fast and complicated pieces without ever looking at his hands.

His attention returned to the outdoors and it was then that Jadeite noticed a shimmering around the palace. The result of Zoisite's playing, the barrier being put in place that would block Amaya's presence. The shimmering wall began up high and then slowly worked its way down and around the palace. Once in place, it wouldn't be visible or effect anyone besides Amaya, or so it was believed.

Jadeite was getting a headache. It began as a dull ache, but slowly grew with the music until it was an almost unbearable pounding. He pressed his hands to his temples, trying to block out the pain. Sweat began to form on his brow and he slide down to the floor as the pounding refused to subside.

The instant that the magical barrier was in place, Jadeite felt a sudden, sharp pain, greater than all the rest. It was enough to cause him to scream, and that finally caught Zoisite's attention.

"Jadeite!"

The pain was subsiding now, thankfully. Jadeite thought for a moment that he would pass out if it had continued any longer. His hands fell from his temples and braced himself against the floor as he panted. What had happened?

"Jadeite?" Zoisite's hands were on his shoulders, trying to help him up. "Are you alright?"

"I think so," he whispered. "My head..."

"The barrier is fully in place now, so you should be fine."

Slowly Jadeite managed to get himself into a sitting position on the floor. "What happened?" he asked, wishing the Zoisite would just explain what was going on.

"Mio was still connected to you after all. The barrier broke the link. So long as you are separated, she can't control you. Now we'll have to work on erasing the spell completely."

Still connected? "You mean, she could have still made me do things?"

Zoisite nodded, "yes, but not any more. As long as you remain in the palace."

At least being confined to the palace was better than his chambers. Jadeite struggled to his feet, Zoisite releasing him once he was stable. "So now what?" he asked.

"Now we need to remove the last traces of the spell so that Mio won't be able to control you if you ever come in contact with her again. As of right now, I can allow you to return to partial duties, so long as you stay within the boundaries of the barrier, if you feel ready for that."

Jadeite nodded. He wanted to get back to regular life again, and it wasn't as if he needed to leave the palace often anyway. "Thank you."

Zoisite returned to the piano and then gestured for Jadeite to join him. Jadeite stood beside the bench, waiting for Zoisite's instructions.

"What I'm going to do," he explained, "is simply look for traces of the spell, so that I can tell what we are dealing with. I need you to close your eyes and try to clear you mind. Focus on the music."

* * *

Venus knelt on her knee before Queen Serenity briefly before being told to rise. "My Queen, I have questions for you concerning Sailor Senshi other than the four of us."

"Besides the Guardian Senshi?" she asked, and at the same time signalling with her hand that the Throne Room should empty. It would probably be best that this discussion be confidential, and Venus wondered if in fact the Queen did know more than she was letting on.

Venus waited for the room to clear, and when it did the Queen stood and approached the Senshi. "What are your questions?" she asked softly.

"I know of the Senshi of the Outer System, of course, but are there others?"

"Others?" The Queen became contemplative. "Why do you ask?"

She was hiding information, Venus was sure of it, but for what purpose? "You know of the resent event on Earth, correct?"

Queen Serenity nodded. "A girl attempted to kidnap the King."

Venus nodded. "What has not yet been divulged is that it was a Senshi besides ourselves that defeated Mio."

"Go on," the Queen prompted when Venus paused.

"At first I thought that the Princess herself had changed forms, but that was not the case. There was a blinding white light, but I could see her sailor fuku, blue and pink with lace. She had blond pigtails as well. From what I understand, this description is not consistent with that of any of the Outer Senshi, so I am at a loss as to who she could be."

While the Queen looked as though she was hiding information before, she looked truly confused now. "I know of no Senshi of that description," she said. Venus was disappointed initially, as the mystery had not been unravelled. "Allow me a few days time and I may have more information for you," the Queen added.

Venus bowed politely in thanks. "I appreciate the help, my Queen. May I ask one more thing?"

"Yes, of course."

"Since we do not know who this Senshi is, is it possible that she could be a threat of some kind? She appeared quite powerful, more so than any of us. Is it possible for a Senshi to become dangerous to others?"

The Queen nodded slowly, "it is possible. You would be right to take precautions, even if she appears to be on your side for now."

Venus bowed. "We will." As she turned to leave, the queen stopped her by calling her name. Venus paused and turned again.

"You have always been the most devoted of the Senshi, Venus," Queen Serenity said. "Please continue to watch over her, but do not forget that you are allowed your own life as well."

Venus shook her head, for once disagreeing with the Queen. "I plan to always watch over her, my Queen, and I won't interfere with the other Senshi if they so desire their own personal lives, but I don't think that is meant to be my fate." Venus had been devoted to this mission since before her memory began, and it wasn't something she could easily put behind her. After all, what kind of life was the Queen thinking of? Something like what Mercury seemed to be heading towards? Courting and perhaps marrying? It wasn't something that Venus ever planned on doing.

"How can you be so sure of your fate? You are still very young."

The Queen's words did manage to make her pause, but only for a moment. "I am certain, My Queen."

* * *

Life once again returning to normal was a relief for Mercury. While she certainly had no regrets about being one of the Princess' guardians, she preferred it when she didn't have to act on her duties. Venus would probably scold her, saying that a Senshi must always be on guard and ready to fight, but Mercury just didn't see it that way.

Her share of the preparations for the wedding were finished, early, the way she preferred to do things. Now she was helping out the others where she could. Oddly enough, she seemed to be asking Kunzite most of the time. She supposed that she just enjoyed being around him, something else Venus, or at very least Mars, would argue with her.

Kunzite was... interesting. That was the best word she had to describe him. He radiated power, and upon first meeting him, he had been rather intimidating to speak to. Mercury learned quickly however, that he rarely used his power. For instance, she knew that he was a more skilled fighter than Nephrite, but Kunzite had only used what was minimally required of him. He thought about things, everything, before he acted it seemed. Jupiter was wrong, however. Mercury most certainly wasn't attracted to him. He was just a friend, that's all.

She found him in the hall to be used for the wedding dance. He and Jupiter seemed to be tag teaming as coordinators while the rest of the palace staff worked to decorate. He appeared quite busy, and so Mercury decided that she would rather not bug him at this particular moment. She turned to leave, but Kunzite caught sight of her and motioned for her to wait a minute.

After dealing with the current question of where a particular vase should go, he had a brief word with Jupiter who took over for the both of them, sending Mercury a wink. She really did have the wrong idea.

"Everything is looking great," Mercury commented when Kunzite joined her. "It's coming together well."

"Thank you. What brings you here?"

Mercury didn't really have a real answer for that. He obviously didn't need help. "Just thought I would check by to see if you needed an extra pair of hands, but I see you have many today."

Kunzite nodded and took a moment to survey the work. "I think everything will be find here, and to be honest, Jupiter is doing most of the work. I feel in the way, she kind of shooed me over here."

Mercury knew that wasn't the reason, but she kept that to herself. "I'm sure she didn't mean it that way."

Kunzite turned back to Mercury and he was wearing that smile again. She suddenly felt like there were butterflies flying around in her stomach, and she couldn't understand why. "I hope," he said, speaking slowly, thoughtfully, "that you'll save at least one dance for me after the wedding?"

Mercury blinked a few times in response. The question had come rather suddenly, and she didn't really know how to reply to it.

"Unless, you're bringing a date, perhaps you already have someone on the Moon." His face didn't disclose anything, but there was something in his voice that told Mercury that he would be disappointed if that were the case.

She shook her head, finally able to speak. "No no, there's no one. I really don't have time for that sort of thing, being one of the Princess' guardians and all. Not that I mean that you do or anything!" She stopped and covered her face partially with her hand, having embarrassed herself well enough by this point. "What I mean to say is that a dance would be fine."

Kunzite just smiled, apparently not offended at her comment. "I look forward to it."

* * *

The initial probes Zoisite did with his music were troubling. Mio had managed to get her claws into Jadeite quickly and effectively. He didn't voice these concerns to Jadeite right away. He only told him that it would be a few days work at least. A few weeks or months might have been more accurate, and that was if it was at all possible to revoke the spell.

After Jadeite left the first day, Zoisite had stayed at his piano most of the night. It was the first time that he was required to draw on all his knowledge of spells and magic that he had.

The second day, Zoisite discovered that there was more than just a powerful spell in place, Mio had it blocked with a sort of barrier, not entirely unlike the one he himself had put around the palace. He figured that it was triggered with a word or phrase, and that a normal state of consciousness could be returned similarly, but it seemed that he wouldn't be able to get through to the spell itself without that word, or more research.

Zoisite spend the next two days in the library. Jadeite often accompanied him, saying that the wedding preparations were mostly finished and that they didn't need him for anything. Zoisite did his best to not worry Jadeite, but he could see the distress in his eyes.

Finally, on the fifth day, Jadeite actually asked. "Don't lie to me any more, how bad is it?"

They were sitting in the piano room, and Zoisite's research had told him very little. He told Jadeite the truth then, that as it was, there wasn't much he could do. Jadeite could continue his duties, but they couldn't take any risks in Mio getting in contact with him again.

Jadeite took it rather well, all things considered. He was probably expecting this, Zoisite figured. "So, I don't leave the palace," he said, after taking a few minutes to digest the news.

Zoisite nodded. "While I am not fully certain, Mio would have to be near you to use the trigger. Those words she said to you before 'the world went all fuzzy'."

"I can't remember then."

"If that's the case, then you would be fine to travel anywhere so long as she is not around. Unfortunately we don't know where she is, or even if she is still alive."

Jadeite nodded. "What about the Moon?" he asked. "She couldn't teleport there, not with the shield they use to protect the Moon. It would be fine for me to go there, right?"

Zoisite thought on this for a moment. "I would think so, but I would have to speak to the queen first of course. She would need to know everything that I do first."

Jadeite leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. He remained like that for sometime, and Zoisite just let him be. He turned back to his piano and played a few softer pieces, not for invoking spells of any kind, but simply to play.

After the third piece ended, Jadeite finally spoke. "I'm such a failure."

"You're not a failure," Zoisite replied, turning to face Jadeite once again. He was more or less in the same position. "We didn't see it coming any better than you did."

Jadeite shook his head. Zoisite was relieved to see that he wasn't crying, but his expression was hardly a picture of calm either. "I should have ignored her, focused on the Master.."

"Ignoring someone you're attracted to isn't exactly the easiest thing in the world, especially not when she's trying to lure you in. You need to stop blaming yourself and remember that it was Mio, and not you, that caused this to happen."

Jadeite sighed. "I still love her. Even after everything she's done, I still love her."

"I know. It won't be something easy for you to overcome."

"Do you even know what I am feeling?"

It came out as harsh, but Zoisite knew that Jadeite didn't really mean it that way, and Jadeite had an excellent point as well. "No, I don't."

His response seemed to puzzle Jadeite at first, as if he had been expecting Zoisite to claim otherwise.

"Have you spoken to the Master since that day?"

Jadeite shook his head, his facing showing the discomfort he felt at that suggestion.

"Perhaps you should, he might be able to help you more than I can."

"What do you mean?"

Zoisite gave a soft, encouraging smile. "He's more familiar with the emotions you are feeling than I am."


	10. Chapter 10

It had finally happened. After all of the preparations, and the trouble with Mio behind them, the wedding had taken place without the slightest complication. Amazing considering how little time they all had had to plan for it and the number of people involved. Hundreds of guests from both kingdoms had come, as well Queen Serenity had made her first visit to Earth in many decades. She had looked sad, Venus had noted, but that was to be expected. The Princess was the happiest Venus had ever seen her, and she had made a beautiful bride. Following the wedding, was the official ceremony to name Serenity Queen of Earth. That took just as long as the wedding, and Venus could tell that her charge was eager to get to the party.

"Are you ready?" Zoisite asked, drawing Venus from her thoughts.

"Mm," she nodded. She didn't want to mention the fact that she was a bit nervous about performing in front of others, considering Zoisite looked as calm as always.

Like the other Senshi, Venus did not wear her sailor fuku to the wedding, but rather a yellow dress with a sheer train. The other Senshi wore similar dresses, but in their own colours. The Shitennou, as well as King Endymion, had retained their usual uniforms for the ceremony. Some kind of tradition, Venus guessed.

The wedding party and guests that had been invited to remain for the dinner and dance had since finished their meal and were ready for the dance to begin. Zoisite sat at the piano, which had been moved into the room earlier in the day and tuned. Venus clutched one hand in the other nervously while they waited for the newly weds to enter.

It didn't take much longer. The King and Queen of Earth were announced and everyone in the room stood to great them.

Princess Serenity looked gorgeous in her wedding gown. Pure white with white cloth roses along the neckline and white flowers in her hair as well. She clung to King Endymion's arm as they made their way to the dance floor, and Venus knew that she would be expected to sing at any moment. The Princess smiled widely at her and Venus smiled nervously back.

At least most eyes in the room would be on the couple dancing instead of the people performing the song, so Venus was thankful for that much at least. She looked down at Zoisite, who was ready when she was and she nodded. It was now or never.

_Yoake mae no_  
_Kumo ni kinsei _  
_Anata to futari _  
_Mitsuketa ne _

Venus' voice shook at first, and she glanced down at Zoisite as she began to sing. He nodded up at her, encouraging her to continue as his fingers had no trouble finding the right keys.

_Himitsu no koi _  
_Dare ni mo iezu _  
_Sotto sora ni _  
_Kieteku ka na _

As the song continued, Venus began to find strength. The King and Princess danced their first dance gracefully to the music.

_Toiki de kaze ga kawaru _  
_Kimochi wo hoshi ni tobasu _

Venus began to lose herself in the music. She was able to forget that there were so many people listening to her. She closed her eyes as she continued.

_Tsutanaku hakanage na _  
_Konna omoi mo _  
_Mirai de umarekawaru _

She wasn't even aware of anyone else soon. Not the wedding guests, the Princess or her new husband, nor even Zoisite on the piano.

_Asa no hodou itsu made mo _  
_Te wo tsunaida yo ne _  
_Wasurenai kara ne _  
_Itsuka wa dakishimete ne _  
_Zutto zutto suki da kara _  
_Namida wa misenai _  
_Atarashii koi dekiru ka na _  
_Kinsei mitete _

Venus was actually surprised when the song ended. It had seemed so short. Applause from the guests filled the room and even the King and Princess turned and applauded Venus and Zoisite. Hesitantly, Venus took a bow, a little uncertain if this is what she should be doing. Thankfully, Zoisite did the same.

The hired orchestra would handle the music from here on in, and Venus fully intended to relax for the rest of the night.

The Princess ran over. "Venus, that was beautiful! Thank you so much, both of you!"

"You're welcome, Princess."

Princess Serenity seemed a little confused by the old title, but didn't concern herself with it much as she ran back to her husband.

"Would you like to find a table together?" Zoisite asked her after the Princess had left.

Venus looked up at the Tennou. Surprised that he wanted to socialize after their work together was finished. "I suppose," she agreed. "If you want to."

* * *

Queen Serenity of Earth was enjoying the party immensely. She had never been happier in her whole life. She and her husband danced almost every dance for an hour before he asked that they sit for a breather. Serenity herself was still full of energy, so instead she decided to survey the party and make sure that her Senshi were enjoying themselves as much as she was.

She found Jupiter and Mars sitting together, watching the party for the most part. Jupiter seemed content, but Mars looked like she would rather be anywhere else.

"Is something wrong, Mars?" Serenity asked, taking a seat at their table as well.

Mars looked surprised, but shock her head. "No, Princess. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You should be having fun!"

Mars gave Serenity a smile, "this is your party, Princess. Don't worry yourself with me. I may leave soon to return to the Moon with your mother."

Serenity was a bit disappointed that Mars would be leaving, but she couldn't really force her to remain here. "What about you, Jupiter?"

Jupiter smiled, a bit more genuine than Mars had. "I'm happy just looking at the other couples, or future couples..."

"Future couples?" Serenity asked.

Jupiter nodded at the dance floor where a certain raven-haired Tennou was dancing with Mercury.

Serenity squealed at the sight. "They look perfect together!" She couldn't be happier for Mercury, who danced gracefully following Kunzite's lead. The spoke as they danced, and Serenity was dying to sneak in close to listen to what they were saying.

"I agree," Juptier replied, "but unfortunately not everyone is so happy."

"Hm?" Serenity asked for clarification.

"I saw Nephrite earlier this evening. He wasn't impressed by them and I haven't seen him since."

Serenity remembered then that Jupiter had mentioned that both men were interested in Mercury. She felt bad for Nephrite, but they couldn't both court her.

"Have you seen Venus?" Serenity asked, "Wasn't her singing wonderful?"

"It was, but no. I haven't seen her. Coincidently, I haven't seen Zoisite either."

Serenity raised an eyebrow and then decided that she needed to find that pair as well. She excused herself from the table and began to wander further. There was a bar at the back of the room, and it was there that she found the missing Nephrite. He looked depressed and angry, and much like he wanted to be left alone with his drink, so Serenity moved on.

She passed by the bar and made her way to the other side of the room. She quickly hid herself as best as she could in her bright white wedding dress when she spotted Venus and Zoisite seated in the back corner, as far from the party as one could get. Serenity snuck as close as she could. The pair were talking over drinks, and both were smiling, something that looked rather odd on both of their faces. They couldn't be...

"There you are," a familiar voice came from behind Serenity.

Serenity turned, caught in the eavesdropping act by her new husband. "I was just seeing how the Senshi were doing," she said.

Endymion looked passed her and at the pair that had caught her attention. "They seem to be getting along well," he commented. "Did you want to dance again?"

Serenity nodded as she let Endymion lead her back out onto the dance floor.

* * *

The rum wasn't helping, and Nephrite had had quite a bit. Every time he looked over his shoulder he saw _them_. Either dancing or sitting at a table, but always smiling. He took another drink, but the glass was empty.

He raised his hand and the bartender responded quickly. "Rough night?" he asked.

"You could say that," Nephrite replied, drinking from the glass as soon as it was full again. "He's no good for her," he muttered under his breath.

"Who's no good for who?" the man asked.

Nephrite had had enough that he didn't really care who heard his thoughts. "Mercury and Kunzite," he said. "He's a bastard, she deserves better."

The bartender wasn't going to touch that one, Nephrite knew. And so he sat quietly by himself while he finished his new drink.

"Nephrite, are you alright?"

Nephrite turned and looked up at Zoisite, who had appeared to refill his and Venus' drinks. "Yeah, just great," he replied sarcastically.

"Whatever the problem is, getting drunk probably isn't going to solve it."

"Yeah, whatever."

Zoisite left when his drinks arrived, and Nephrite was thankful for that. He didn't need to explain himself to Zoisite. He didn't need to explain himself to anyone. If he wanted to get wasted, he would damn well get wasted.

He looked over his shoulder again, but Kunzite and Mercury weren't on the dance floor, nor were they at the table. Curious, he surveyed the rest of the room and found them standing off to the side near one of the doors. They were speaking quietly to each other, and Kunzite had his hand on Mercury's shoulder. Nephrite took another drink.

Mercury smiled happily at the Tennou leader and Kunzite's hand left her shoulder and grazed over her cheek. They spoke for a few more minutes before they left the dance hall together.

Nephrite downed what was left in his glass in one gulp.

* * *

"Where are we going?" Mercury asked.

"You'll see. It's a bit of a walk and outside. Did you want to get a cloak first?"

"No, I'll be fine."

Kunzite nodded and offered Mercury his arm as they made their way out of the palace and down a path that lead through a wooded area. Kunzite had been waiting for the perfect moment to bring Mercury here, and tonight seemed like the night.

"Do you go to this place often?" Mercury asked as they walked along the path. It was dark, the full moon overhead had trouble penetrating the tree tops overhead.

"Usually when I want to be alone, yes," Kunzite replied. "But I knew that I had to share it with you."

Gently, he detached her hand from his arm and instead wrapped it around her waist. She didn't protest and in fact seemed to lean into him a bit as they walked.

There was a clearing up ahead, and Kunzite smiled to himself as they approached it. This would be perfect.

Mercury gasped, raising both of her hands to her mouth in surprise as she took in the scene. The clearing allowed the moon to shine through brightly and it reflected off the water of the small lake. It was completely surrounded by trees and had a small beach. To their right, an old tree truck lay on it's side, making a perfect bench. Kunzite removed his arm from Mercury when she stepped forward a head of him to inspect the lake.

Kunzite moved over to the log and smiled as Mercury took in the sight around her. She slipped out of her shoes and walked towards the lake, lifting the skirt of her dress to avoid getting it wet as she dripped her foot into the cool water.

Kunzite marvelled at her beauty as she took a few more steps into the lake and spun around in the water. It was like this place had been made for her and was just waiting for her to descend from the heavens. "You're beautiful," he said quietly, but loud enough for her to hear.

Mercury pause and opened her eyes. Kunzite could have sworn that a blush had crept onto her cheeks, but it was too dark to tell. "I...." she trailed off, having trouble finding the words to reply.

"Do you like it here?" he asked, something she might have less trouble with.

"It's wonderful! I didn't know such places existed on Earth."

"Then I'm glad I could share it with you."

Mercury stepped out of the water and walked towards Kunzite. He took this opportunity to remove his cape and drape it over the log so that she had a clean place to sit and then offered her the seat. "Thank you."

Kunzite sat next to her and brought his arm around her shoulders. "Are you sure you're not cold?" he asked.

"The cold doesn't really bother me," Mercury replied, looking out at the lake.

"I meant what I said then," Kunzite changed the subject suddenly. He touched Mercury's chin gently with his other hand and turned her head to face him. "You're beautiful."

She most definitely blushed that time. Kunzite wondered briefly if he should press forward with this. That last thing he wanted to do was scare her away. To hell with it, it was now or never.

Slowly he leaned in towards her, asking for permission with his eyes. Mercury closed her eyes and leaned in as well until their lips met softly.

Kunzite couldn't help but smile as they kissed. Everything had gone perfectly according to plan and he counted himself incredibly fortunate to be in this situation. But he couldn't push things to far tonight, and so he broke the kiss.

Mercury appeared speechless, and Kunzite suspected that it was probably a good thing. "We've been gone for a while," Kunzite commented, "perhaps we should be heading back soon?"

Mercury nodded, "of course, you're right. I... um..."

Kunzite stood and offered his hand to help her up. As she retrieved her shoes, Kunzite brushed off his cape and re-hooked it on his uniform. "We can come back here again any time," he said as she returned to his side and they began their journey back.

"I'd like that."


	11. Chapter 11

Zoisite laughed along with Venus as she tripped over her words. "Are you sure you want another?" he asked lightly.

"I'm fine!" she insisted, "after all, they say that the best things in life are greener on the other side of the fence."

Zoisite shook his head. "Are you always this terrible with proverbs?"

"... not usually."

Zoisite returned to the bar for another round, truly amazed with how well he and Venus were getting along. He looked over at Nephrite, who was still conscious by some miracle, but did have his head lying on the bar.

Zoisite had learned from his first few trips that Nephrite didn't want to be bothered, but seeing him like this did make Zoisite want to do something to help him. What could have him so upset that it would drive him to this state?

The doors to the hall opened and Kunzite and Mercury entered. Zoisite looked over at them curiously as he had not noticed them leave. Kunzite had his arm around Mercury and wore a grin like that cat that got the mouse.

Nephrite looked over at them sluggishly and then, with great emphasis, downed the rest of his drink. Again.

Was that it? He didn't want to see Kunzite with Mercury? Zoisite had to admit that he was surprised to see this turn of events, but he didn't really feel strongly about it one way or the other.

Nephrite slammed the glass down on the bar loud enough for those around him to look over in question. Cautiously, Zoisite walked over to him to investigate. "Nephrite?"

"That bastard..." Nephrite growled. "Look at him with her!"

Zoisite raised an eyebrow and looked over at the pair. They had decided to go to the dance floor, which by this point in the evening had cleared out considerably. "Nephrite, maybe you should go back to your room for the night?"

"Leave me the hell alone, Zoi," Nephrite spat at him.

Zoisite sighed and grabbed the drinks before returning to Venus.

"Something wrong?" she asked, eagerly sipping from the new glass.

"Just Nephrite. I think he's angry over Kunzite and Mercury."

"Kunzite and Mercury?"

Zoisite gestured to the pair dancing, rather closely. "Don't know when that happened, but he's not happy about it."

Venus nodded. "I knew they were both interested in her, but I figured she would go for Nephrite."

Zoisite looked at her curiously, "oh? What makes you say that?"

"I'm the Senshi of Love, Zoisite! I just know things like this." She giggled after this, causing Zoisite to shake his head yet again.

A strange question popped into Zoisite's head then, and the alcohol wouldn't let him keep it to himself. "If you're the Senshi of Love, then tell me. What do you see between us?"

"Us?"

"Yes," Zoisite repeated, resting his elbows on the table. "Purely out of curiosity."

Venus became thoughtful for a moment. A bit of a comical sight considering her state. "I don't know, I'm not very good at knowing these things for myself. Why?"

Zoisite shrugged his shoulders. "No reason, I just thought it would be interesting. Kunzite with Mercury, you and me. Maybe we could pair up the others as well."

This got Venus laughing hysterically. "Good luck with that one! Mars hates all of you!"

Zoisite took at sip from his drink and looked over at Kunzite and Mercury once more. They seemed to be quite occupied with looking into each other's eyes as they danced slowly. He surveyed the rest of the room quickly and couldn't find his Master or the new Queen. They had probably retired for the evening.

Jadeite was also gone. He had been gone for a while, leaving before even the Queen of the Moon had. He had been having a difficult time dealing with Mio, even now he could often be found staring off into space with a sad look on his face. Zoisite knew that he was back speaking with the Master again, at least he forgave himself that much, but the memory of the girl was another story.

"Woah!" a cry from Venus caught Zoisite's attention. She had slipped off her chair and fallen onto the floor. Uninjured as she proceeded to laugh at this as well.

"Ok, I think it's time to get you back to your room," Zoisite said, leaving his own chair to help Venus to her feet. He found this more difficult that it needed to be as his own coordination was a bit off.

"No, really, I'm fine."

"Come one," Zoisite urged. "Let's go."

* * *

Jupiter enjoyed watching the couple over the evening. A few men had asked her to dance, and she had, but really she preferred watching the others. Kunzite and Mercury interested her most of all, and then later, as the room cleared a bit, she could watch Zoisite and Venus.

Those two had been interesting. They hadn't danced at all as far as Jupiter could tell, and now it seemed that Venus was a bit intoxicated and Zoisite was helping her back to her room. No, that wasn't quite right. He was stumbling just as much as she was as they left the hall together.

Jupiter returned her attention to the pair still on the dance floor. She really wanted to know what happened when they had left earlier for almost an hour. She made a mental note to grill Mercury about that the next morning.

Something happened then that made Jupiter jump out of her seat. Nephrite had wandered away from the bar and was making his way towards Kunzite and Mercury. He grabbed Kunzite's cape and pulled him away roughly, and with the grace of... well... nothing. Nephrite was trashed.

"Nephrite, what has gotten into you besides a large amount of liquor?" Kunzite asked, straightening his uniform out.

"You... you are a jack ass, Kunzite!" Nephrite shouted, even though he was close enough to speak normally. He waved his finger in Kunzite's general direction. "You keep your hands off... off my woman!"

Jupiter decided it might be best to move closer to the group to help out in case Nephrite did something he would regret.

"Excuse me?" Kunzite asked.

"You heard me," Nephrite continued, waving his whole arm now for emphasis. "Mercury is mine! You have no right..."

Jupiter shot a look over at Mercury, who looked rather uncertain about what to do.

"I think Mercury is capable of choosing her own men," Kunzite replied, "and I do have my doubts that she would choose a drunk such as yourself. Honestly, Nephrite, just look at yourself."

"Go to Hell, Kunzite. Mercury, you really like me better, right?" Nephrite asked, attempting to step around Kunzite, but was only successful at falling on his face. "He's a dick. All he wants is to get you into bed. I know him, he's-"

"I've had about enough of this, Nephrite. You're going back to your room." Kunzite grabbed the back of Nephrite's jacket and hauled him to his feet.

"Don't touch me, ass."

Kunzite rolled his eyes. "You are going to hate me in the morning. Mercury, I'm sorry, but I need to get him out of here."

"I said stop touching me!"

"Wait," Mercury finally spoke up. "I'll take him back. I think he might go a bit more peacefully that way, and I do feel bad about this."

Kunzite looked like he wanted to argue that point, but Jupiter saw the value in this as well. "Let her take him, he probably won't spend the whole trip waking up the rest of the palace."

Kunzite finally agreed, and Mercury positioned herself under one of his arms. "I'll be back once he's in his room," Mercury promised as she urged Nephrite to move out of the room.

"So you do like me better!" Nephrite said happily as Mercury lead him away.

Kunzite sighed and looked around the room. There really weren't that many people left and those that were looked as though they would be leaving any time now as well. "Well, I suppose the party's over," he said.

"It was fun," Jupiter commented, trying to lighten the mood. "And I do think that you are Mercury are good for each other."

Kunzite turned and looked at Jupiter. "Did you spend the whole night watching us?"

"Most of it."

"Is this going to be well spread news by tomorrow morning?"

Jupiter smiled, "Probably, but not by any of my own doing. I think you two took care of that yourselves."

* * *

Nephrite wasn't exactly the lightest human being on Earth, and he was putting most of his weight on Mercury's shoulders. "We're perfect for each other, you know?" he said, louder than Mercury would have preferred.

Mercury sighed as she continued to half-escort, half-drag Nephrite down the palace halls as he continued to go on about their supposed relationship.

Voices around the corner caused Mercury to slow down in curiosity. She needed to go down that route as well, but it seemed that someone else was in her way.

"This isn't my room, it's yours!" A rather loud and intoxicated Venus pronounced.

"You were distracting me," Zoisite replied, "I came here out of habit."

Mercury looked at Nephrite and motioned with her hand that he should be quiet while she watched the two from around the corner. She didn't really want to eavesdrop, but she got the feeling that she didn't want to walk passed them either.

"You sure? Or maybe you just wanted me to spend the night here..."

"Not that I would be opposed but... what are yo-"

Mercury stared wide eyed as Venus grabbed the front of Zoisite's jacket and pulled him in for an impromptu kiss.

"Whoa..." Nephrite said from above, also peaking around the corner.

"Shh!"

For the first few seconds, that's all it was, a kiss. But when Venus started fumbling to undo Zoisite's jacket and Zoisite's hands travelled a bit lower down her back than would be appropriate for the middle of the hallway, Mercury realized that this relationship was jumping through it's stages rather quickly.

"Can we do that?"

"Shh!"

The pair broke for air and then looked at each other in realization of what they were doing. This look lasted approximately five seconds before they were back at it again. Mercury was really starting to wonder how long it was going to take them to either stop or move out of the hall. Thankfully Zoisite thought enough to reach for the door knob and open the door. The two stumbled inside and closed it behind them.

With a sigh of relief Mercury stepped out from the corner and checked on her charge.

"Damn, Zoisite's getting some action!"

Mercury could only shake her head. "I hope for Venus' sake that you forget this in the morning. Come on, your room's not far."

"So we can do that?"

"No."

* * *

Endymion placed his wine glass down on the table and then went out to the balcony where his new wife was watching the fire works. He put his arm around her waist and she leaned against him.

"Aren't they beautiful, Endymion?"

The King smiled and looked down at Serenity. She was smiling as the explosions lit up the sky in every colour of the rainbow. "They are," he agreed, "but there is something else that is even more beautiful."

"Oh? What's that?"

"She's standing beside me."

Serenity giggled, the sighed contently. "I know it's early," she said slowly, thoughtfully, "but as soon as possible, I want to have children."

Early was right, but Endymion certainly felt the same way. "How many do you want?" he asked with a grin.

Serenity shook her head and she had a far off expression on her face as she probably imagined their future children. "I don't know... several?" She looked up at her husband then, tentatively checking to see if he had any objections to "several".

"'Several' would be fine," Endymion replied, placing his hands on her shoulders as he turned to face her. "I want children as much as you do."

A wide smile found itself on Serenity's face quickly. "And I want to raise them myself!" she added. "I know the maids would help, but I want to do it myself."

"Are you sure you're up to the task of 'several' children?" Endymion teased.

The Queen stuck out her lower lip in a pout. "I most certainly am!"

It felt so right to be here, married to the Lunar Princess, discussing children, watching the fireworks, and just being together. Everything was perfect with the world. Endymion leaned down and kissed his bride passionately, ready to get started on the first of 'several'.


	12. Chapter 12

Venus sat quietly in the examination room on the Moon. She had told no one that she was coming here, and most certainly not that she was feeling unwell. Dizzy spells had been plaguing her for about two weeks, and they were getting worse. She was also getting headaches, and at times was sick to her stomach. Overall, she felt weak, and so she went to the palace physician on the Moon.

When the doctor came back in the room, Venus immediately stood and wanted to ask what was wrong, but another wave of dizziness hit, and the doctor had to help her sit back down in case she missed the chair. "What's wrong with me?" she asked. "Do you know?"

"Yes," the doctor replied hesitantly, "but it will be difficult for you to take."

Venus looked up, concerned suddenly. "It's serious then?"

Again, the doctor nodded. "I'm not sure how to tell you this."

"Just tell me!" Venus exclaimed, "I need to know."

The doctor spoke only a few words, and they made Venus' heart skip a beat. She stared wide-eyed at the physician, suddenly she had difficulty breathing and was feeling light headed again. "I can't..." she whispered to herself, shaking her head as if that would somehow make her condition vanish. "I can't be."

The doctor was asking other questions now, but Venus heard none of them. She was in shock, her body trembled, and she was scared. For the first time in her life, she was terrified.

* * *

To be continued in... "Meant to be"

This chunk of the series has come to an end, and I will continue it in my next story, "Meant to be". Sorry for taking so long on updating this with such a small chapter, I had forgotten to upload it earlier. Meant to be will start going up once I finish some of my other stories, which aren't posted here, since they can't be.


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